North Korea denies allegations that American student died from torture

On September 28, North Korea affirmed that American student Otto Warmbier did not suffer any torture during his 17 months of detention.

The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) quoted a North Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman as saying that the country had provided medical care to Warmbier, despite the student's "hostile acts" against Pyongyang.

The torture allegations are "baseless slander" by the US government against North Korea.

Student Otto Warmbier at the time of his detention in North Korea. Photo: theguardian

The announcement came a day after an Ohio coroner said Warmbier, who had been held captive by North Korea for 17 months, died of a lack of oxygen to the brain. Ohio officials suspect the American student was tortured.

Speaking at a press conference, Dr Lakshmi Sammacr said: "He has brain damage or encephalitis due to lack of oxygen. It could be due to blood stopping flowing to the brain or the ability to breathe being interrupted. However, we do not know why he fell into that condition. We do not have enough information to come to any specific conclusions."

Warmbier (22 years old), a student at the University of Virginia, was arrested by North Korea in early 2016. He passed away on June 19 at a hospital in Cincinnati, nearly a week after being returned to the US in a coma.

Warmbier's parents claim their son was tortured while in detention in North Korea.

Following the incident, the US government issued a ban on its citizens traveling to North Korea from September 1, which will be effective for one year. The ban states that all US passport holders are not allowed to travel to or through North Korea except in special cases, due to concerns about the risks to US citizens when traveling to this Asian country. Exceptions include journalists and humanitarian aid workers who have been granted permission./.

According to VOV