REPORT: EX-TOP NORTH KOREAN OFFICIAL EXECUTED IN 2008

North Korea has executed a former official in charge of inter-Korean relations, accusing him of allowing the population to develop a favorable image of South Korea, Yonhap News reported.
Choe Sung Chol was killed last year, the news agency reported, citing an unidentified person familiar with North Korean affairs.
While Choe was officially charged with bribery, he was executed for ignoring opponents and pressing ahead with closer ties with South Korea that threatened to make the communist state too dependant on its richer neighbor, Yonhap reported.