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jeffrey fowle
American citizen Jeffrey Fowle has been released by the North Korean authorities, US officials say.
Jeffrey Fowle, 56, was one of three US citizens detained in North Korea.
State department spokeswoman Marie Harf confirmed that Jeffrey Fowle was on his way home on October 21 following negotiations.
Marie Harf said the US was working to secure the release of two other US nationals, Matthew Miller and Kenneth Bae, who remain in detention in North Korea.
The US has accused North Korea of using the detained Americans as pawns in a diplomatic game.
Jeffrey Fowle entered North Korea on April 29 and was detained in early June as he was leaving the country. He was charged with “anti-state” crimes.
He was reported to have left a Bible in the toilet of a restaurant in the northern port city of Chongjin but his family has insisted that he was not on a mission for his church.
Jeffrey Fowle entered North Korea on April 29 and was detained in early June as he was leaving the country
Missionary activity is considered a crime in North Korea.
In August, Jeffrey Fwle and fellow detainee Matthew Miller made a televised appeal to the US government to help secure their release.
Responding to the appeal, the US authorities vowed to make securing the release of the detainees a “top priority”.
Matthew Miller was later sentenced to six years’ hard labor for committing “hostile acts”.
The state department’s Marie Harf said Washington welcomed Jeffrey Fowle’s release, adding that US officials “remain focused on the continued detention of Kenneth Bae and Matthew Miller and again call on the DPRK [North Korea] to immediately release them”.
She said North Korea had asked the US government to transport Jeffrey Fowle out of the country as a condition of his release.
Marie Harf also thanked Sweden, which serves as the US protecting power in North Korea, for the “tireless efforts” of its embassy in Pyongyang.
No reason was given for Jeffrey Fowle’s release.
Washington has been trying to send high-level representatives to negotiate the detainees’ release, but these visits have been cancelled by North Korea in recent months.
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The White House has announced it is working to free three American citizens detained in North Korea.
The statement was made in response to a televised appeal by the Americans asking for help from the US government.
Kenneth Bae, 46, has been held in North Korea since 2012 and is currently in a labor camp outside Pyongyang.
Jeffrey Fowle, 56, and Matthew Miller, 24, are charged with violating North Korean law and are awaiting trial.
The three spoke to CNN and the Associated Press on September 1 with North Korea officials present.
Each man was interviewed separately for five minutes in different hotel rooms in the capital Pyongyang.
All asked for a US representative to go to North Korea to make a direct appeal for their release.
Kenneth Bae has been held in North Korea since 2012 and is currently in a labor camp outside Pyongyang
“We have seen the reports of interviews with the three American citizens detained in North Korea,” White House spokesman, Patrick Ventrell, said in a statement.
“Securing the release of US citizens is a top priority and we have followed these cases closely in the White House. We continue to do all we can to secure their earliest possible release,” he said.
In his interview, Kenneth Bae said he had been hospitalized for health problems which included back pain, a sleep disorder and weight loss.
The Korean American missionary is serving a sentence of 15 years of hard labor in a camp outside Pyongyang after being convicted of trying to overthrow the government.
“The only hope that I have is to have someone from the US come,” Kenneth Bae said.
“But so far, the latest I’ve heard is that there has been no response yet. So I believe that officials here are waiting for that,” he said.
Kenneth Bae said he was not aware he had violated North Korean law and asked for forgiveness.
The other two detainees, Jeffrey Fowle and Matthew Miller, told reporters they expected to face trial within a month, but did not know what the specific charges were against them.
Jeffrey Fowle arrived in North Korea in April and was held when he tried to leave the country, according to North Korean news agency KCNA.
Reports in the Japanese press say Jeffrey Fowle was suspected of leaving a bible in a nightclub in the northern port city of Chongjin. Christian proselytizing is considered a crime in North Korea.
Matthew Miller was also taken into custody in April after he reportedly tore up his tourist visa at the airport and shouted he wanted asylum, according to KCNA.
“I’ve been requesting help for a long time and there’s been no movement from my government,” Matthew Miller told CNN.
Jeffrey Fowle and Matthew Miller have said they expect to face trial within a month. But they said they do not know what punishment they could face or what they are accused of.
North Korea has a history of using detainees as bargaining chips.
In the past, senior US figures including former President Bill Clinton have travelled to the country to ensure the release of Americans.
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Two American tourists detained in North Korea have pleaded for the US government to help secure their release.
Matthew Todd Miller and Jeffrey Fowle told the AP news agency they expected to be tried soon and given long prison terms.
The two men said they were in good health and had been treated well but expected conditions to get worse.
They were detained separately in April but both were accused of “committing hostile acts” while in the country.
Matthew Todd Miller and Jeffrey Fowle have pleaded for the US government to help secure their release
Jeffrey Fowle, 56, entered North Korea on April 29 and was detained in early June as he was leaving the country
He is said to have left a bible in the toilet of a restaurant in the northern port city of Chongjin but his family have insisted that he was not on a mission for his church.
North Korean authorities say Matthew Miller, 24, entered the country on April 10 with a tourist visa but tore it up at the airport and shouted that he wanted to seek asylum.
Speaking for the first time since being detained more than three months ago, Matthew Miller said: “The horizon for me is pretty dark. I don’t know what the worst-case scenario would be, but I need help to extricate myself from this situation. I have been requesting help from the American government, but have received no reply.”
It is unclear whether North Korean officials were in the room at the time of the interview or if the men were being coerced.
Authorities say they are preparing to bring them before a court, but the charges or potential punishment have not been specified. The date of the trial has not been announced.
North Korea has in the past been accused of using arrested Americans as diplomatic bargaining chips.
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North Korea has announced that it will put detained US citizens Matthew Todd Miller and Jeffrey Fowle on trial, accusing them of “committing hostile acts”.
Matthew Todd Miller and Jeffrey Fowle had been investigated and would be brought before a court, the state news agency KCNA reported.
North Korea said that suspicions about the two men had been confirmed by evidence and the pair’s own statements, but gave no further details.
Another US citizen, Kenneth Bae, is currently serving a 15-year sentence.
Kenneth Bae was arrested in November 2012 and later convicted of trying to overthrow the North Korean government.
US attempts to secure Kenneth Bae’s release have so far proved unsuccessful, despite fears over his health.
Matthew Todd Miller and Jeffrey Fowle entered North Korea on tourist visas.
US citizen Jeffrey Fowle was arrested in North Korea because he left a Bible at a hotel
Jeffrey Fowle, 56, entered North Korea on April 29 and was detained in early June as he was leaving the country, according to North Korean reports.
Japanese agency Kyodo said Jeffrey Fowle was arrested because he left a Bible at a hotel.
Matthew Todd Miller was detained on April 10, KCNA reported.
The North Korean state agency said Matthew Todd Miller had torn up his tourist visa, shouting that he had “come to the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] after choosing it as a shelter”.
North Korea has in the past been accused of using arrested Americans as diplomatic bargaining chips.
The US wants Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear ambitions in return for economic and diplomatic incentives, but talks on a deal agreed in 2007 have been stalled for several years.
Last year, North Korea carried out its third nuclear test and launched a three-stage rocket that Washington called a banned test of long-range missile technology.
The US has no formal diplomatic ties with North Korea. But in the past, senior US figures including former President Bill Clinton have travelled to North Korea to ensure the release of American detainees.
Religious activity is severely restricted in North Korea and missionaries have been arrested on many previous occasions.
Kenneth Bae, the highest-profile of the currently detained Americans, was sentenced to 15 years’ hard labor in May 2013.
North Korea says Kenneth Bae used his tourism business to form groups to overthrow the government.
The US has tried on at least two occasions to arrange a visit by a senior human rights envoy, Robert King, to discuss his case, but Pyongyang has cancelled both these visits.
Detainees from other nations can be treated differently – earlier this year, Pyongyang deported Australian missionary John Short, who was detained after apparently leaving Christian pamphlets at a tourist site.
Also on Monday, North Korea proposed a suspension in hostilities and slander between the two Koreas.
The proposal comes after a volley of short-range missile launches by North Korea, and just days ahead of a visit to Seoul by Chinese President Xi Jinping.
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