DPRK-US Relations: Who are the three Americans being detained in the DPRK?

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01:14

The three Americans have varying backgrounds and have been held in the DPRK for months - one for years. Here's more:

Kim Hak-song worked at the privately-funded Pyongyang University of Science and Technology -- or PUST -- where he intended to start an experimental farm. He was arrested in Pyongyang last May on suspicion of "hostile acts". He describes himself as a Christian missionary.

Two weeks before Kim Hak-song was arrested, Kim Sang-duk -- or Tony Kim -- was detained on espionage charges. The 55-year-old was trying to leave the country after spending a month working at PUST. Kim was also reportedly involved in humanitarian work there. He had worked as an accountant in the US for more than a decade.

And Kim Dong-chul is a South Korea-born US citizen. A pastor in his early 60s, he was detained in 2015 on spying charges and was sentenced to 10 years' hard labour the following year. Before his trial, he confessed to stealing military secrets in collusion with South Korea, a claim which was rejected by Seoul. Mr Kim used to run a trading and hotel services company in the north-east of the country.