Pyongyang blasts famine report as groundless

A senior North Korean diplomat has rejected reports of widespread hunger and desperation by a German doctor who was recently expelled from the country.

The diplomat, Kim Yong-ho, based with the North Korean mission to the United Nations in Geneva, told the BBC that groundless accusations were normal from people who had been expelled.

He acknowledged there had been food shortages due to natural disasters, but the situation was improving.

The doctor, Dr Norbert Vollersten -- who was thrown out of the country last week for criticising human rights abuses -- said that the situation in the countryside was desperate, with many North Koreans driven to alcoholism by their fear of the state machinery used to silence opposition.

Dr Vollersten said that surveillance and arbitrary detention seemed common.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service