Seoul Links Shooting to Beijing Standoff

South Korea linked the shooting in Seoul of a prominent North Korean defector to the standoff at the South Korean Consulate in Beijing over another defector. Lee Han Young, a nephew of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s first wife, was shot Saturday outside a friend’s apartment in a Seoul suburb. Lee remained hospitalized in critical condition, and doctors told police he was brain dead. Police blamed the shooting on North Korean agents, and South Korea’s prime minister indicated it was linked to the defection of Hwang Jang Yop, who is holed up in the Beijing consulate. Lee’s real name is Lee Il Nam. Because of his ties to the North Korean leader, he had been under close protection since his arrival in Seoul, and his 1982 defection was kept secret until last year. South Korea’s 650,000-member military, on higher alert after Hwang’s defection, stepped up security even further after the shooting.