Kim Jong-nam murder: Poisoning caused serious paralysis, death within 'about 20 minutes'
Updated
The dose of nerve agent given to North Korean ruler Kim Jong-un's exiled half brother was so high that it killed him within 20 minutes and caused "very serious paralysis", Malaysia's Health Minister has said.
Key points:
- Kim Jong-nam died "between 15 and 20 minutes from application" of nerve agent VX
- Nerve agent believed to have been produced in sophisticated state weapons laboratory
- Sweep of airport terminal finds no trace of VX toxin
Kim Jong-nam died on February 13 at Kuala Lumpur's international airport, in what Malaysian police say was a well-planned hit by two women who wiped a liquid on his face.
One of the women, now detained in Malaysia, said she was paid $120 for her role in the assassination.
The woman said she thought she was taking part in a prank television show.
Police revealed on Friday that the banned chemical weapon VX nerve agent was used to kill Kim, raising the stakes in the case.
Health Minister Subramaniam Sathasivam said the dose of VX given to Kim was so high that he showed symptoms within minutes.
He fainted at the airport clinic and died in the ambulance while en route to a hospital, he said.
"VX only requires 10 milligrams to be absorbed into the system to be lethal, so I presume that the amount of dose that went in is more than that," he said at a news conference.
"The doses were so high and it did it so fast and all over the body, so it would have affected his heart, it would have affected his lungs, it would have affected everything."
What is VX gas?
- A highly toxic and rapidly acting chemical warfare agent developed in the UK in the 1950s
- The most potent of all nerve agents, it is much more potent than the well-known sarin but works in a similar way
- Symptoms appear within seconds of exposure to the vapour or after exposure to the liquid form
- A large dose of VX may result in convulsions, loss of consciousness, paralysis and respiratory failure possibly leading to death
- It is possible that any visible VX liquid contact on the skin, unless washed off immediately, would be lethal
- Only one person has ever been officially confirmed as having died from VX. If confirmed, Jong-nam would be the second
Asked how long it took for Kim to die after he was attacked, Mr Subramaniam said: "I would think it was about, from the time of onset, from the time of application, 15-20 minutes."
Malaysia has not directly accused the North Korean Government of being behind the attack, but officials have said four North Korean men provided two women with poison to carry it out.
The four men fled Malaysia on the same day as the killing, while the women — one from Indonesia and the other from Vietnam — were arrested.
Experts say the nerve agent used to kill Kim was almost certainly produced in a sophisticated state weapons laboratory and is banned under an international treaty.
But North Korea never signed the treaty, and has spent decades developing a complex chemical weapons program.
Airport sweep finds no trace of nerve agent
Kim Jong-nam was not an obvious political threat to his estranged half brother, Kim Jong-un.
But he may have been seen as a potential rival in North Korea's dynastic dictatorship, even though he had lived in exile for years.
North Korea has denied any role in the attack.
Mr Subramaniam said the state chemistry department's finding of the VX toxin confirmed the hospital's autopsy result that suggested a "chemical agent caused very serious paralysis" that led to death "in a very short period of time".
He said the final autopsy report would be submitted to police soon.
Mr Subramaniam also said that there have been no reports of anyone else being sickened by the toxin, but that medical workers who attended to Kim Jong-nam would remain under observation for possible delayed effects.
Tens of thousands of passengers have passed through the airport since the apparent assassination was carried out. No areas were cordoned off and protective measures were not taken.
Early on Sunday, more than a dozen officers in protective gear swept the budget terminal where the attack happened and said they found no traces of VX.
Abdul Samah Mat, the police official leading the investigation, said the terminal was "free from any form of contamination of hazardous material" and declared it a "safe zone" after a two-hour sweep.
AP
Topics: law-crime-and-justice, crime, murder-and-manslaughter, world-politics, malaysia, korea-democratic-people-s-republic-of, asia
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