U.S. journalists handed 12-year terms in N.K.

Two U.S. journalists have been handed 12-year sentences in North Korea`s notorious prison camps. The communist state claims they had entered the country illegally.

The Central Court -- Pyongyang`s top court -- "tried the two journalists Laura Ling and Seung-eun Lee from June 4 to 8 and found them guilty," the state-run Korean Central News Agency said. Seung-eun is also known as Euna Lee.



Ling and Lee -- who were working for former Vice President Al Gore`s California-based Current TV -- cannot appeal because they were tried in North Korea`s highest court, where decisions are final.

The pair had been detained in March while covering the plight of defectors living along the China-North Korea border. But the conditions under which they were arrested remain under a shroud of secrecy.

Analysts have said the two journalists have a good chance of getting freed since the North is most likely using them as a bargaining chip with the United States amid a standoff between the two nations.

North Korea is under mounting international criticism due to its May 25 nuclear test that has prompted U.S. President Barack Obama to signal a shift to a tougher line of policy towards the reclusive state.

U.S. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly has said the United States was "deeply concerned" about the sentences and that officials would "engage in all possible channels" to free the women.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently conceded that Washington has exchanged messages regarding the two journalists and said the government would continue to work for their release.

Al Gore also was urged by some to show support, but the former vice president has so far declined comment. (jemmie@heraldm.com)



By Kim Ji-hyun and news reports