Malaysia expelled North Korea's ambassador Saturday, giving him 48 hours to leave the country as a diplomatic row deepened over the assassination of the half-brother of Pyongyang's leader.
Kim Jong-Nam, 45, was poisoned on February 13 at Kuala Lumpur International Airport with VX, a nerve agent so deadly that it is classed as a weapon of mass destruction.
The dramatic killing has sharply soured relations between Malaysia and North Korea, which has not acknowledged the dead man's identity, vehemently protested the murder investigation and accused Kuala Lumpur of being in cahoots with its enemies.
Arch-rival South Korea has blamed the North for the murder, citing what they say was a standing order from leader Kim Jong-Un to kill his exiled half-brother who may have been seen as a potential rival.
"The expulsion of the DPRK (North Korea) Ambassador is... an indication of the government's concern that Malaysia may have been used for illegal activities," Malaysia's foreign ministry said in a statement on Saturday.
"The ambassador has been declared persona non grata" after Malaysia demanded but did not receive an apology over Pyongyang's attack on its investigation of the case, the statement added.
"He is expected to leave Malaysia within 48 hours."
The row erupted last month when Malaysian police rejected North Korean diplomats' demands to hand over Kim's body.
Ambassador Kang Chol reacted by saying that the investigation was politically motivated and that Kuala Lumpur was conspiring with "hostile forces".
Malaysia then summoned Kang for a dressing-down over his accusation, with Prime Minister Najib Razak describing the ambassador's statement as "totally uncalled for (and) diplomatically rude".
Malaysia also recalled its envoy to Pyongyang and has cancelled a rare visa-free travel deal with North Korea, putting the skids under once cozy ties.
The rift widened on Thursday when a senior North Korean diplomat leading a delegation to Kuala Lumpur reiterated Pyongyang’s assertion that Kim had died of a heart attack, dismissing the use of a nerve agent.
The foreign ministry statement said that on February 28 the government had already issued Pyongyang a same-day deadline for a written apology over Kang's accusations.
"No such apology has been made, neither has there been any indication that one is forthcoming," it added. "For this reason, the Ambassador has been declared Persona Non Grata."
'A conspiracy'
Kang's expulsion order came the same day that the only North Korean arrested over the assassination denounced Malaysia's probe as "a conspiracy to impair the dignity of the Republic (North Korea)".
Ri Jong-Chol, who was released and deported Friday due to lack of evidence, said that police had offered him a comfortable life in Malaysia in return for a false confession.
Ri's release came days after two women -- one Vietnamese and one Indonesian -- were charged with murdering Kim Jong-Nam.
Airport CCTV footage showed the women approaching the heavyset 45-year-old and apparently smearing his face with a cloth.
Police say he suffered a seizure and died less than 20 minutes later. Swabs of the dead man's face revealed traces of VX nerve agent.
Terror list warning
On Friday police issued an arrest warrant for a North Korean airline employee, Kim Uk Il, 37, in connection with the murder.
They also requested that Hyon Kwang Song, second secretary at the North Korean embassy, assist the probe.
Both are believed to be in Malaysia. Four others are thought to have fled to Pyongyang on the day of the assassination.
South Korean and Japanese media, citing diplomatic sources, have reported that the US has been mulling placing the North back on its terror list, which includes Iran and Syria.
North Korea warned Saturday the US will "pay dearly" if it blacklists Pyongyang over the killing.
"The US will keenly realise how dearly it has to pay for its groundless accusations against the dignified" North if it puts it back on the terror list, the regime's foreign ministry spokesman told state-run newswire KCNA.
The spokesman maintained that Pyongyang opposed "all forms of terrorism" and accused the US of trying to tarnish its reputation.
Key accusations levelled at Malaysia by North Korea over Kim Jong-Nam killing
Here are the key accusations made by North Korea since the killing on February 13:
No trust in Malaysian police
Kang has said that the Malaysian police cannot be trusted to investigate the assassination fairly:
"There is no clear evidence on the cause of death and at the moment we cannot trust the investigation by the Malaysian police."
Colluding with enemies
The ambassador tested Malaysia's patience by alleging it was in cahoots with its arch-rival Seoul:
"This incident is politicised by Malaysia in collusion with South Korea."
Smear campaign
North Korea's official Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) condemned the Malaysian autopsy on the body of Kim Jong-Nam as "illegal and immoral" and demanded the remains be handed over.
The North maintained there was no clear evidence linking it to the murder and accused the South, the US and Malaysia of framing Pyongyang as part of a "smear campaign".
Police brutality
Kang accused Malaysia of police brutality against the North Korean suspect who has since been released, and said the country was violating human rights:
"They even pointed the guns to his family members to threaten their lives and beaten his teenage son in the face. This is the human rights abuse that can be seen only in the US gang film."
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