Man hailed for ‘single-handedly invading North Korea’ using a simple gadget

North Korea is perhaps best known for two things: its “dear leader’s” haircut rules and its ruthless isolationism.

Indeed, entering the secretive state as a tourist is notoriously tricky, and not without substantial risks.

Just take the case of Otto Warmbier, an American student who was imprisoned by the despotic regime in 2016 on a charge of “subversion”.

His crime? Allegedly trying to steal a propaganda poster from his hotel, for which he was sentenced to 15 years in jail with hard labour.

In June 2017, Warmbier was released in a vegetative state and died a short while after returning home to Cincinnati, Ohio.

And yet, one brave (or, more accurately, reckless) social media user, has managed to infiltrate the country’s near water-tight borders using a dazzlingly simple device.

Massive portraits of Kim Il-sung and his firstborn son, Kim Jong-il, hang in the country's capital Pyongyang(iStock)

The Redditor, who goes by the username XioHao2, posted a series of stunning photos, which he allegedly captured of North Korea, after flying a drone across the border from China.

The images include a shot of a large building featuring portraits of the country’s founder Kim Il-sung and his firstborn son, Kim Jong-il.

The other aerial views show the concrete streets eerily deserted, with roads lacking cars and pavements lacking people.

However, in one photo, people can be seen looking up at the drone, suggesting the Reddit poster’s activities didn’t go unnoticed.

The series of snaps has racked up more than 6,900 comments, with viewers sharing their thoughts on both the footage and the stunt itself.

“Am I tripping or is there no street drainage at all? Definitely no traffic lights. Looks like a concrete model of a city," one wrote.

“Where are the people? Are they only props that come out whenever the Dear Leader needs his ego stroked?” asked another.

“It's the greyest country in the world. F**king depressing,” commented a third.

Meanwhile, other commentators voiced concerns that the original poster (OP) could end up in a lot of trouble as a result of their amateur spying mission.

“That is so so so cool, but not smart,” one warned. “The Chinese government has a tight relationship with North Korea, returns escapees, helps prosecute criminals.

“If [you’re] flying a DJI drone they have even more info on you, info that would allow them to track you down after the fact. So be careful.”

(For the uninitiated, DJI is the name of a Chinese drone company.)

One image appears to show people looking up at the drone (@XiaoHao2/Reddit)

Another concerned Redditor added: “This won’t create an international incident but you can be sure both governments will be working to figure out who it was.”

However, others took a more lighthearted approach, musing on the implications of the OP’s research.

“If this random dude with a drone from a store can this easily spy on North Korea, imagine the intel the US has!” one wrote.

Another joked: “US intelligence are probably like 'wait s**t, we spent hundreds of millions on spy satellites and could have just used a f**king $500 drone?'"

And a third added admiringly: “Guy single handedly invaded N. Korea.”

The OP later confirmed that they were "still alive" and that the images were taken above the North Korean city of Sinuiju during the 2020 Covid pandemic.

The country has been closed to foreign travellers for nearly five years owing to coronavirus restrictions and is only just beginning – slowly – to reopen its borders.

Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter

How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings