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Kim Jong-Il's grandson arrives to study in Bosnia

A grandson of reclusive North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il has arrived in Bosnia to study at an international school for the next two years, a police source said.

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Source: AFP


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A grandson of reclusive North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il arrived in Bosnia on Wednesday to study at an international school for the next two years, a police source said.

"A North Korean national, Kim Han-Sol, arrived at 2.20 pm (1220 GMT) at Sarajevo airport by a regular flight from Vienna," local border police spokesman Sanela Dujkovic told AFP.

Dujkovic said the "passenger had a valid visa and passport," thus satisfying all conditions to enter the country.

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The United World Colleges (UWC) in the Bosnian town of Mostar said last month it had accepted Kim Han-Sol as a student.

According to the school, the enrollment of the grandson of the leader of one of the most isolated countries in the world was the result of a special outreach programme for North Korea the UWC network has.

Media reported that the 16-year-old's father is Kim Jong-Nam, the North Korean leader's exiled eldest son. The pair is said to have lived in Macau since the father fell out of favour with Kim Jung-Il years ago.

Kim Jong-Nam is understood to have once been the frontrunner to succeed the North Korean leader. But the youngest son Kim Jong-Un is now being groomed to take over one of the world's most isolated countries.

The UWC is a network of school and colleges throughout the world, attended notably by pupils from war-affected areas, and aimed at promoting international and intercultural understanding.

The southern Bosnian town of Mostar was the scene of violent clashes between the country's Croats, Muslims and Serbs during its 1992-1995 war.

Sixteen years since the end of the war it still remains a symbol of inter-ethnic divisions in the Balkan country.


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