American sentenced to 15 years in North Korea, US calls for his release
Published:Thursday | May 2, 2013 | 2:37 PM
WASHINGTON (AP):
The United States (US) is calling for North Korea to grant amnesty and immediately release of a Korean-American sentenced to 15 years' hard labor for "hostile acts" against the state.
The Korean-American is 44-year-old Kenneth Bae.
Bae is at least the sixth American detained in North Korea since 2009.
The others eventually were deported or released without serving out their terms, some after trips to Pyongyang by prominent Americans, including former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter.
Analysts say Bae's sentencing could be an effort by Pyongyang to win diplomatic concessions in the ongoing standoff over its nuclear program.
However, there was no immediate sign a high-profile envoy was about to make a clemency mission to the isolated nation which has taken an increasingly confrontational stance under its young leader Kim Jong Un.
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