Korea orders all S. Koreans to leave Kaesong immediately

On Thursday, South Korean workers started withdrawing from the industrial park jointly run by the two Koreas. All South Korean property except private belongings will be frozen and managed by a committee of Gaeseong residents, the North Korean committee said.

North Korea’s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland – part of Kim Jong Un’s ruling Workers’ Party – said in a televised statement that Pyongyang “will deport all South Korean workers as of 5 p.m. [3:30 a.m. ET]”.

Seoul’s Defense Ministry says it can not confirm the report, which cited an unidentified military official.

The North’s aggressive measures marked a significant escalation of cross-border tensions that have been elevated since North Korea carried out a nuclear test last month and a long-range rocket launch on Sunday. South Korea’s responded Thursday by beginning work to suspend operations at the factory park, one of its harshest possible punishment options.

Pyongyang said it would expel all South Koreans working at the Kaesong industrial complex Thursday, freeze all the assets of South Korean companies operating there, and place the zone under military control.

The statement launched a series of crude insults at the South Korean president, accusing her of “inveterate sycophancy” and “confrontational hysteria” at the behest of American “prodding”. Such sexist language is also typical of North Korean propaganda.

Seoul’s move is aimed at cutting off North Korea’s source of hard currency to prevent South Korean money from being funneled into the North’s nuclear and missile development.

A stressful mix of anger and anxiety was the dominant feeling among scores of South Korean businessmen crossing the border Thursday (Feb 11) into North Korea to oversee the death of a decade-long investment. Soldiers stood guard near customs offices and military vehicles escorted cars and vans to the South Korean side.

Hyundai Merchant Marine Co., an affiliate of the Hyundai conglomerate whose tour-operation arm brought visitors to North Korea during periods of friendlier inter-Korean relations, tumbled 20%.

The question among some is, why now?

“The south Korean puppet group will experience what disastrous and painful consequences will be entailed by its action”, it added.

Almost 124 South Korean companies employed about 55,000 North Koreans at the industrial park, located about 34 miles northwest of Seoul.

After South Korea punished its estranged neighbor for allegedly testing a hydrogen bomb by deafening its border patrols with Hot 100 hits, North Korea struck back by launching a long-range rocket on Sunday, triggering a United Nations Security Council meeting and unnerving everyone else.

The recovered fragments include a first-stage missile propellant, a rocket engine nozzle and rocket debris, South Korea’s News 1 reported.

South Korean businesses at the park urged the government to reconsider the shutdown. South Korean companies paid Kaesong employee wages directly to the Pyongyang government.

“It was inevitable for the government to suspend the operation of the Kaesong Industrial Complex in light of the current situation”, said Kim Moo-sung, chairman of the ruling Saenuri Party.