Kim Jong-nam murder: Women plead not guilty in Malaysia trial

 girls have pleaded not guilty to murdering kim jong-nam, the half-brother of north korea's chief, as their trial in malaysia were given under way.
The brazen nature of his killing, the use of the tremendously poisonous vx nerve agent as he waited for a flight at kuala lumpur airport in february, bowled over the sector.
Vietnamese doan thi huong, 29, and indonesian siti aisyah, 25, are accused of rubbing the chemical on his face.
The pair say it became a tv prank and they have been tricked via north korean sellers.
Pyongyang has denied any involvement inside the killing, but in court docket prosecutors stated that four guys - believed to be four north koreans who fled malaysia at the day of murder - were additionally charged inside the case.
The incident brought about a sour diplomatic row and strained the once cordial ties between north korea and malaysia, which expelled every other's ambassadors.
The bbc investigates the memories of these accused of killing kim jong-nam
Because it passed off: unravelling the mystery
Death in a dynasty: what caused kim jong-nam's loss of life?
What happened at courtroom?
The trial has been 8 months within the making and the two girls are the simplest suspects absolutely charged to date with the murder of kim jong-nam.
A royal malaysian police automobile convoy which is assumed to include doan thi huong from vietnam and siti aisyah from indonesia leaves the shah alam excessive courtroom in advance of the trial of suspects within the assasination of north korean leaderimage copyrightepa
Photograph caption
Police automobiles believed to be sporting the two girls are seen leaving court docket in shah alam, malaysia
With their heads bowed and sporting handcuffs and bullet-evidence vests, the women walked past a horde of reporters gathered outdoor the court docket in shah alam, outdoor kuala lumpur.
After the prices were read to them in court docket in indonesian and vietnamese, the two ladies entered their pleas through interpreters.
If discovered responsible, the girls face the dying penalty. Their defence legal professionals are possibly to argue that the actual culprits are north korean dealers, who left malaysia.


Media captionwhy become north korea's kim jong-nam killed?
But in his establishing feedback, the prosecutor said he targets to prove that the women, along with four people still at massive, had the "common aim" to kill mr kim.
He stated the ladies had done practice runs in kuala lumpur purchasing department stores earlier than the attack, beneath the "supervision" of the four people, who had been not named in courtroom.
Dozens of witnesses, which include airport workforce who got here into contact with mr kim, are expected to take the stand within the trial which will run for weeks.
Why become the homicide so surprising?
The murder is extremely good for its sheer audacity, taking location because it did mid-morning in complete view of security cameras at kuala lumpur's airport.
On thirteen february the two women had been seen threading thru crowds of human beings and accosting mr kim, earlier than rubbing their arms on his face.


Media captionthe cctv pictures shows a woman in white lunging at a man
Then there was the speed with which mr kim died. Right away after the attack he sought assist from airport staff, who led him to a hospital, but he collapsed and died just mins later.
After a autopsy exam, malaysian government introduced he had been killed via vx, a toxin so lethal that it's far labeled as a weapon of mass destruction by the united nations.
Who in north korea may want to organise a vx homicide?
How is north korea worried?
The two girls, who have been arrested days after the killing, have insisted that they had been tricked with the aid of north koreans into taking part in what they notion was a tv prank. Four north korean guys who fled malaysia quickly after the incident are believed to suspects. Interpol issued "pink notices" for their arrest in march.
Malaysia has named and questioned different north koreans with regards to the case.
However authorities additionally allowed three of them to go away the united states in overdue march, in return for north korea freeing nine malaysian diplomats and their households.
All the main gamers within the mysterious killing
What does the case inform us approximately north korea?
Mr kim, who changed into in his mid-40s, become the estranged older half of-brother of north korean chief kim jong-un.
On the time of his demise, he changed into believed to were living in self-imposed exile in macau and turned into notion to have had some hyperlinks to china.
Some accept as true with he was killed because he turned into visible as a capacity leader-in-ready, and consequently a danger to his younger brother, but many analysts have brushed off this.
As with a whole lot regarding north korea, the real motivations in the back of mr kim's homicide are in all likelihood to stay uncertain.