ICC Note:

The Department of State announced on July 21 it would ban US citizens from travelling to North Korea, citing “mounting concerns over the serious risk of arrest and long-term detention under North Korea’s system of law enforcement”. U.S. passport holders will not be able to travel to North Korea beginning September 1, 2017. Reuters news agency reports that North Korea is holding two Korean-American academics and a missionary, a Canadian pastor and three South Korean nationals who were doing missionary work.

08/04/2017 North Korea (CBS News) – U.S. passport holders will not be able to travel to North Korea beginning September 1, according to a statement issued by the U.S. State Department on Wednesday.

Officials say that anyone currently in North Korea that hold a U.S. passport should leave before the restrictions take place next month — which will remain in effect for one year unless extended or sooner revoked by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

“The Secretary has authorized the restriction due to the serious and mounting risk of arrest and long-term detention of U.S. citizens under North Korea’s system of law enforcement,” the statement read.

Certain groups of people — including journalists and humanitarian workers — may apply for exceptions to the ban, according to the public notice.

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