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North Korea says civilian deaths, if true, very regrettable

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SEOUL | Sat Nov 27, 2010 5:13am EST

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea said on Saturday that if there were any civilian deaths in its attack on a South Korean island, they were "very regrettable."

North Korea shelled the island of Yeonpyeong on Tuesday, killing two civilians and two Marines and destroying dozens of houses. It said it was responding to live fire by South Korea into its waters.

"If that is true, it is very regrettable," KCNA said of the civilian deaths. "But the enemy should be held responsible for the incident as it took such inhuman action as creating 'a human shield' by deploying civilians around artillery positions and inside military facilities."

(Reporting by Cheon Jong-woo; Writing by Nick Macfie)
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Comments (11)
marisa70394 wrote:
Well, well, North Korea has kind of apologized for killing innocent people. I am trying to remember if this is the first time they have ever tried to apologize for anything bad they’ve ever done, hmmm? I wish we could hear a similar apology from China, “We kinda sorta are a little sorry about shooting at those kids on the square – if anyone got hurt, well, they shouldn’t have been there in the first place.” I hope the world can see how authoritarian regimes operate – they never like to point the finger at themselves and blame themselves for any errors. They never seem to look themselves in the mirror and say, “We are murderers”. I see Russia making progress when they declare Stalin was indeed a murderer. Democracies can confront their past misdeeds: the US and Australia have made huge strides in making reparations to their native populations, and that work continues. Wow, what a difference it would make in the world if authoritarian regimes like NK, Burma and China simply apologized to their citizens for their failures and honored those citizens for their bravery who stood up to them.

Nov 27, 2010 7:05am EST  --  Report as abuse
OneWayOut1WayUp wrote:
I dont think they are sincere in their apology.

Nov 27, 2010 7:19am EST  --  Report as abuse
OhSayCanYouSee wrote:
Enough of this “be patient with them” approach. Time and time again, we use restraint and diplomacy with no success. North Korea is like a little bully child. Eventually, they need a good slap in the face to get their attention. Several well placed nuclear weapons will let them know that their violent behavior will not be tolerated any longer. Give China a heads up opportunity to put a stop to North Korea’s rock throwing. If China is unable to resolve the issue…… Take Action against North Korea…. Before the next rock they throw is the nuclear weapon they claim they will use.

Nov 27, 2010 9:08am EST  --  Report as abuse
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