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China has been quietly and gently pressuring North Korea to scrap plans for a third nuclear test, said two sources with knowledge of closed-door discussions between the countries, but there is no indication how Pyongyang will react. If North Korea goes ahead with the test, China would consider taking some retaliatory steps, but they would not be substantive, a source with ties to Pyongyang and Beijing said. North Korea has almost completed preparations for the test, Reuters had reported in late April, a step that would further isolate the impoverished state after last month's failed rocket launch that the United States says was a ballistic missile test. "China is unhappy … and urged North Korea not to conduct a nuclear test near Changbai Mountain," said the source, who declined to be identified. China feared a radiation leak and damage to the environment from a blast, the source added. "China also complained about the environmental damage to the area after the first two tests." When North Korea conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009, it caused environmental damage to the mountain straddling the border with China. North Korea ceded part of the mountain to China in 1963. It was unclear if the secretive North Korean government, typically unwilling to bow to outside pressure, would defer or drop the plans. China is the closest thing to an ally that North Korea has. "The impact on China's northeast would be huge," the source said of a third test. Chinese officials have discussed whether threats of diplomatic action would be effective, but any action might be restricted to some economic measures to signal China's displeasure and would not affect vital food aid for North Korea, the source said. A Western diplomat, who also asked not to be identified, confirmed that China has put pressure on North Korea to abandon the test. Major diplomatic repercussions were unlikely, however, said Jin Canrong, associate dean of the School of International S

EOUL - South Korean police said Tuesday they were investigating 27 North Korean refugees for swindling private insurance firms out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in bogus medical claims. Police said the refugees faked illness in collusion with hospitals to claim a total of 1.04 billion won ($909,000) from insurance firms between 2007 and 2010. While listed as hospitalised, they frequented saunas, restaurants and even nightclubs. The scam also involved a 71-year-old doctor and five hospital employees who conspired with the refugees to claim a separate 104 million won from the state health insurance agency, police said. Police are also investigating two brokers on suspicion of helping the refugees send some of the proceeds to relatives in the North. Fraudsters involved in medical insurance rackets have previously made use of North Koreans. In 2008, police charged 41 refugees involved in bogus medical claims. More than 23,500 North Koreans have settled in the South since the 1950-53 war. TShey get government financial help along with job education but many fail to adapt to their new environment.

In his 30-plus years as a doctor, Bruce Tempest had never seen anything like it. A Navajo man having trouble breathing showed up at the emergency room of a small hospital in Gallup, N.M. Less than an hour later, he was dead. The man had been young, athletic and otherwise healthy. His fiancee had died days before, also from sudden breathing problems. "This is something different," Tempest, now 76, remembered thinking of the 1993 illnesses. "It just doesn't fit." Tempest contacted area doctors, looking for other cases. Then he asked

SEOUL - South Korean police said Tuesday they were investigating 27 North Korean refugees for swindling private insurance firms out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in bogus medical claims. Police said the refugees faked illness in collusion with hospitals to claim a total of 1.04 billion won ($909,000) from insurance firms between 2007 and 2010. While listed as hospitalised, they frequented saunas, restaurants and even nightclubs. The scam also involved a 71-year-old doctor and five hospital employees who conspired with the refugees to claim a separate 104 million won from the state health insurance agency, police said. Police are also investigating two brokers on suspicion of helping the refugees send some of the proceeds to relatives in the North. Fraudsters involved in medical insurance rackets have previously made use of North Koreans. In 2008, police charged 41 refugees involved in bogus medical claims. More than 23,500 North Koreans have settled in the South since the 1950-53 war. They get government financial help along with job education but many fail to adapt to their new environment.

South Korean police said Tuesday they were investigating 27 North Korean refugees for swindling private insurance firms out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in bogus medical claims. Police said the refugees faked illness in collusion with hospitals to claim a total of 1.04 billion won ($909,000) from insurance firms between 2007 and 2010. While listed as hospitalised, they frequented saunas, restaurants and even nightclubs. The scam also involved a 71-year-old doctor and five hospital employees who conspired with the refugees to claim a separate 104 million won from the state health insurance agency, police said. Police are also investigating two brokers on suspicion of helping the refugees send some of the proceeds to relatives in the North. Fraudsters involved in medical insurance rackets have previously made use of North Koreans. In 2008, police charged 41 refugees involved in bogus medical claims. More than 23,500 North Koreans have settled in the South since the 1950-53 war. They get government financial help along with job education but many fail to adapt to their new environment.