Shillong, October 13: Pyongyang has refuted speculations that North Korean weapons were used in the unprecedented attack by the Hamas militant group on Israel, dismissing the claims as “groundless.”
As per IANS, Ri Kwang-song, a North Korean commentator on international affairs, accused the US of engaging in a typical smear campaign against North Korea to intentionally connect the recent Middle East crisis to Pyongyang. This was reported by Yonhap News Agency.
In an article carried by North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency, Ri stated, “The US administration’s reptile press bodies and quasi-experts are spreading a groundless and false rumor that ‘North Korea’s weapons’ seemed to be used for the attack on Israel.”
The denial came after Radio Free Asia, a Washington-based media outlet, reported on the suspected use of North Korean weapons by Hamas fighters, citing a video featuring one of the fighters holding what appeared to be an F-7 rocket-propelled grenade launcher manufactured in North Korea.
While suspicions have arisen in the past regarding North Korea’s potential weapon supplies to Hamas, it remains unclear whether the North directly provided the F-7 rocket launchers to the militant group or whether they were obtained through transactions involving other countries.
Earlier this week, North Korea criticized Israel for the escalating conflict with Hamas, attributing it to Israel’s “ceaseless criminal actions” against the Palestinian people.
