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SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The U.S. ambassador to South Korea says he's doing well and will be back to work "ASAP," despite having surgery to his face and arm.
Ambassador Mark Lippert was attacked by a man with a knife today at a breakfast meeting hosted by the Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation. Witnesses say the attacker shouted, "South and North Korea should be reunified."
The attack left deep gashes and damaged tendons and nerves. A hospital official says Lippert received 80 stitches to close a wound on his face.
About nine hours after the attack, Lippert posted on his Twitter account that he's "in great spirits" despite the stabbing.
The man police have named as the assailant has a long history of anti-U.S. protests. He has complained of U.S. interference in Korean affairs. Police say he told them he attacked Lippert to protest U.S. and South Korean military drills that started Monday. North Korea has said those exercises are preparations for an invasion.
North Korea's state-controlled media is praising the attack. It says the "knife slashes of justice" were a "deserved punishment" on what it calls the "war maniac U.S."
%@AP Links
173-r-12-(Sound of Ambassador to Seoul Mark Lippert, in immediate aftermath of knife attack)--Sound of a stunned Mark Lippert exclaiming that he's bleeding and needs to get to a hospital quickly. COURTESY: Yonhap TV ((mandatory on-air credit)) (5 Mar 2015)
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042-a-06-(Robert Ogburn, deputy public affairs officer, Embassy of the United States, at news conference Wednesday)-"in stable condition"-U.S. Embassy spokesman Robert Ogburn says Ambassador Mark Lippert is expected to make a full recovery. (5 Mar 2015)
<<CUT *042 (03/05/15)££ 00:06 "in stable condition"
APPHOTO SEL107: South Korean men watch a TV news program reporting U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert injured in a knife attack at Seoul railway station in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, March 5, 2015. Lippert was slashed on the face and wrist by a man wielding a weapon with a 10-inch blade and screaming that the rival Koreas should be unified, South Korean police said. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) (5 Mar 2015)
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APPHOTO XAHN801: U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert, front right, leaves a lecture hall for a hospital in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, March 5, 2015, after being attacked by a man. Lippert was attacked by a man wielding a razor and screaming that the rival Koreas should be unified, South Korean police and media said Thursday. (AP Photo/Yonhap, Kim Ju-Sung) KOREA OUT (5 Mar 2015)
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