North Korea releases Canadian pastor Hyeon Soo Lim
By Will Ripley, CNN
Updated 7:12 AM ET, Wed August 9, 2017
(CNN)A Canadian pastor imprisoned in North Korea has been freed after two and a half years in detention.
Hyeon Soo Lim, North Korea's longest-held western prisoner in decades, was "released on sick bail" Wednesday by the country's top court for "humanitarian" reasons, state-run news agency KCNA said.
Lim's son, James Lim, received word over the weekend that a plane carrying senior Canadian officials, a medical doctor, and a letter to North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un was dispatched to Pyongyang "at the last minute," according to family spokeswoman Lisa Pak. The plane landed in the North Korean capital Monday.
Lim was serving a life sentence of hard labor after being convicted of crimes against the state in December 2015. The 62-year-old's health has deteriorated while in North Korean custody and the pastor has experienced "dramatic" weight loss, Pak said.
Lim's release comes amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula after US President Donald Trump threatened North Korea with "fire and fury" on Tuesday and Pyongyang said it was considering a military strike against the US territory of Guam.
more:
http://www.cnn.com/2017/08/09/asia/north-korea-canada-pastor-hyeon-soo-lim/index.html
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