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North Korean Video Depicts Burning US City


In this Dec. 12, 2012 file image made from video, North Korea's Unha-3 rocket lifts off from the Sohae launching station in Tongchang-ri, North Korea.
In this Dec. 12, 2012 file image made from video, North Korea's Unha-3 rocket lifts off from the Sohae launching station in Tongchang-ri, North Korea.
With another North Korean nuclear test looming, the country’s official website, Uriminzokkiri, has posted an unusual video on its YouTube channel showing what appears to be a U.S. city in flames after some kind of attack from space.

The video was soon pulled from the popular video sharing site, apparently for violating copyright laws, according to a message posted in place of the video. Some footage in the video appears to come from the video game Modern Warfare 3 by gamemaker Activision Games, Inc.

The video was uploaded February 2, and opens with a young North Korean man comfortably sleeping. The rest of the video, which is scored with the 1985 song “We are the World,” is an apparent depiction of his dream.

Most of the video consists of a montage of footage of North Korean rockets blasting off and fantastical depictions of an imaginary North Korean space shuttle orbiting the Earth. In one image, a crowd rejoices, apparently with the news of a unified Korea. There is no narration in the video, but rather a constant scrolling of text.

At about the two-minute mark, the video takes a dark turn as a burning city resembling New York is shrouded in a scorched U.S. flag.

“Somewhere in the United States, black clouds of smoke are billowing,” read the captions. “It seems that the nest of wickedness is ablaze with the fire started by itself.”

The video concludes by returning to images of the sleeping man, as the captions imply his dream will come true.

“Despite all kinds of attempts by imperialists to isolate and crush us … never will anyone be able to stop the people marching toward a final victory,” the captions read.

North Korea is expected to conduct another nuclear test in response to new United Nations sanctions imposed after a December rocket launch.

Below is a copy of the video.

An English subtitled version of the video is available here.

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