The United States accused North Korea of bullying dissidents on Thursday after diplomats from the isolated Asian country disrupted statements by North Korean defectors on human rights abuses at an event at the United Nations.
Three North Korean diplomats attended the U.S. and South Korean panel on human rights in North Korea, and one began unexpectedly delivering a statement after defector Joseph Kim spoke about his father dying of starvation and enduring a childhood of poverty and hunger.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power called for the microphone to remain off as North Korean diplomat Ri Song Chol delivered a six-minute statement. She warned that U.N. security would be called to remove the delegation.