North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un executed his uncle Jang Song-Thaek 'in a cage of starving dogs along with five aides'

 
AFP PHOTO/YONHAPYONHAP/AFP/Getty Images
Bo Wilson3 January 2014

Kim Jong-Un watched as his uncle was devoured by dogs as a means of execution, it was reported today.

The North Korean dictator used his New Year’s message to announce the death of his uncle, General Jang Song-Thaek, declaring him “despicable human scum, worse than a dog.”

But an account published in the Hong Kong Wen Wei Po newspaper has revealed the horrific details of the execution, claiming he was attacked by “120 hounds, starved for three days.”

Singaporean daily The Straits Times followed up the story, saying the report in the pro-Beijing Wen Wei Po was a means of expressing displeasure over the execution.

Kim Jong-Un (R), and his uncle Jang Song-Thaek at a parade in September
(FILES) This file picture taken by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on September 9, 2013 and received on September 10, 2013 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un (R), accompanied by his uncle Jang Song-Thaek (L), waving as he inspe

General Jang was widely seen as a key connection between reclusive North Korea and its ally China.

The report said rather than death by firing squad, as is usual with political prisoners, the general was stripped naked and thrown in a cage, along with his his five closest aides.

“Then 120 hounds, starved for three days, were allowed to prey on them until they were completely eaten up. This is called “quan jue”, or execution by dogs,” the Straits Times said.

The report said the entire process lasted for an hour, with Kim watching it along with his brother, Kim Jong Chol, and 300 senior officials.

General Jang, who was married to Kim’s aunt, Kim Kyong Hui, was branded a “traitor” on a state news agency announcement on December 13.

It said he had been executed after a special military trial for committing such a “hideous crime as attempting to overthrow the state by all sorts of intrigues and despicable methods with a wild ambition to grab the supreme power of our party and state.”

During his New Year message, Kim said: “Our party took resolute action to remove ... scum elements within the party last year.”

He accused his uncle, once considered the second most powerful individual in North Korea, of trying to build his own power base within the ruling party.

“Our party’s timely, accurate decision to purge the anti-party, anti-revolutionary elements helped greatly cement solidarity within our party,” he said.

The report comes South Korea dismissed Kim’s conciliatory words in his New Year message as an empty gesture, after he called for improved ties between the two nations. Seoul urged Pyongyang to scrap its nuclear programs to show it is committed to better relations.

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