For the second time in less than a week, North Korea tests a hypersonic missile

North Korea announced that its leader, Kim Jong Un, personally supervised a successful test of a hypersonic missile, in the second test of its kind conducted by Pyongyang in less than a week.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un personally oversaw a successful test-fire of a hypersonic missile, the second such test conducted by Pyongyang in less than a week.

The official "North Korean Central News Agency" said that the missile launched on Tuesday carried "a hypersonic glide warhead that hit a target in the sea 1,000 km away."

"During the final firing test, the superior maneuverability of the hypersonic combat unit was more accurately verified," she added.

The South Korean military said the launch had reached hypersonic speeds and showed clear signs of "progress", compared to the test conducted by Pyongyang last week.

Hypersonic missiles fly at Mach 5 (five times the speed of sound) or more and can maneuver mid-flight, making them more difficult to track and intercept.

Pictures published by the Rodong Sinmun newspaper, the mouthpiece of the ruling Workers' Party, on its website, showed the missile taking off from the ground, with leader Kim overseeing the launch process, surrounded by men in military uniforms.

This is the third such test by Pyongyang of a hypersonic missile, after a first test in September 2021 and a second last week.

"The presence of Kim Jong Un during the test indicates that the hypersonic missile has reached a satisfactory level of completeness," said Lim Yeol-chul, a professor of North Korean studies at Kyungnam University in Seoul.

Since Kim Jong-un took power ten years ago, Pyongyang has rapidly developed its military technology. State media reported last year that hypersonic missiles were among the "highest priorities" of North Korea's five-year plan.

This advanced weapon represented the latest technological advance in the arsenal of the Stalinist regime.

The missile was launched as the UN Security Council was holding a closed-door meeting on Pyongyang's weapons programmes, and US State Department spokesman Ned Price said the new missile test "violates several Security Council resolutions."

The test took place on Tuesday as Pyongyang refused to heed US calls for talks.

Dialogue between Pyongyang and Washington is still deadlocked after talks between Kim Jong Un and former US President Donald Trump failed in 2019.

The government of current President Joe Biden has repeatedly expressed its willingness to meet with North Korean envoys in order to reach an agreement on denuclearization, but Pyongyang rejected the offer and accused the United States of pursuing a "hostile" policy.

North Korea has been subject to international sanctions for its banned weapons programmes.

The pressure on its faltering economy has been increased by the strict border closing measures taken to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sexual harassment allegations: Syarie judge says there is a conspiracy

A senior judge embroiled in allegations of sexual harassment against a married woman claimed there was a conspiracy by several individuals in the Shariah Judiciary Department to bring her down.

This is according to a police report lodged today by judge Mohd Na'im Mokhtar ( pictured above ), who is the director general of the department and also the Chief Syarie Judge of Malaysia.

In his report, Na’im “vehemently denied” allegations that he committed sexual harassment against a woman in his home as alleged.

“I vehemently deny the woman's allegations and I have lodged a police report asking the authorities to investigate her for making a false police report, orchestrated by several individuals who wanted my position and tried to bring me down.

“I have cooperated with the police in their investigation, and submitted the names of individuals still serving in the department under my direction,” the judge said in his police report.

Na’im also claimed that this was not the first attempt to bring him down. He said that previously, the same individual tried to associate him with another woman but this was said to be unsuccessful.

It is reported that police have started an investigation against a senior judge who was allegedly lying naked in his bedroom in 2020.

According to news reports, the incident allegedly took place in August 2020 when the judge visited the house of the woman, who lives with her husband.

The judge in the same month lodged a police counter -report, claiming the woman had made a false police report against him.

Defamation suit

Meanwhile, lawyer Akberdin Abdul Kader, who represented Na'im, told Malaysiakini that the judge would also sue politician Lokman Noor Adam on defamation charges.

The former Umno leader is accused of attacking Na'im's credibility in relation to the case in a video clip that has spread on social media.

“My client will sue Lokman Adam for defamation.

"A letter of summons will be issued to Lokman by my law firm tomorrow," Akberdin said.

In a police report today, Na'im said Lokman's allegations against him had tarnished his image and integrity.

The judge said that Lokman was malicious and had committed criminal defamation against him.

“Lokman should have gotten the story from both parties first before making any statement. 

“Unfortunately, he acted recklessly by making serious allegations against me when everything he said was untrue,” Na’im said.