North Korea issues shoot-to-kill orders to prevent coronavirus: US

Pyongyang : North Korea has issued shoot-to-kill orders to ensure coronavirus does not enter their nation from China, said the commander of US forces in the South.

Till date, North Korea has not reported even a single confirmed case of coronavirus, which has swept the world.

Pyongyang closed its border with China in January to try to prevent contamination, and in July state media said it had raised its state of emergency to the maximum level.

US Forces Korea (USFK) commander Robert Abrams said that the border shutdown had increased demand for smuggled goods, prompting authorities to intervene.

The North introduced a new "buffer zone, one or two kilometers up on the Chinese border," Abrams told an online conference organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington on Thursday.

"They've got North Korean SOF (Special Operations Forces) out there. ... Strike forces, they've got shoot-to-kill orders in place."

Meanwhile, South Korea is also dealing with the aftermath of Typhoon Maysak, which according to state media has swept away 2000 homes.