North Korea orders expulsion of Malaysian ambassador

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North Korea said Monday it would expel Malaysia’s ambassador in a tit-for-tat move after Pyongyang’s envoy left the Southeast Asian nation in an increasingly bitter row over the assassination of Kim Jong-Nam at Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

“The Foreign Ministry of the DPRK (North Korea) notifies that the Malaysian ambassador to the DPRK is labeled as a persona non grata… and demanded that the ambassador leave the DPRK,” state news agency KCNA said, giving a 48-hour deadline.

Malaysia had earlier recalled its envoy to Pyongyang for consultations as the two countries traded barbs over an investigation into the killing of the North Korean leader’s half-brother last month.