The United States will ban Americans from traveling to North Korea in the coming weeks due to the "serious risk of arrest and long-term detention," the U.S. State Department said Friday, a month after U.S. college student Otto Warmbier died following his imprisonment by the isolated nation.
State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said that U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had authorized a "Geographical Travel Restriction" on all U.S. nationals' use of a passport for travel to North Korea.
"Once in effect, U.S. passports will be invalid for travel to, through and in North Korea, and individuals will be required to obtain a passport with a special validation in order to travel to or within North Korea," she said.