Thousands of North Korean troops and citizens rallied Sunday to slam the South Korean leader as Pyongyang again ramped up its hostile rhetoric against Seoul despite a surprise nuclear deal with the US.
The rally in the capital Pyongyang, which was broadcast live on North Korean television, saw protesters chant slogans inciting violence against the South Korean president including ‘Let’s tear Lee Myung-Bak to death!’.
Participants, led by top military and communist party cadres, criticised Seoul for allegedly slandering the ruling Kim family and its perceived lack of respect during mourning for Kim Jong-Il who died in December.
Kim’s son and successor Kim Jong-Un was not at the rally, which lasted for an hour.
The North’s supreme military command threatened Friday to launch a ‘sacred war’ against Seoul, accusing South Korean troops of displaying slogans or placards slandering the North’s top leaders at military facilities.
‘We again declare to the world that we will launch indiscriminate and sacred war to wipe out the enemy traitors!’ the North’s military chief Ri Yong-Ho said in a speech during Sunday’s rally.