S.Korean officials expelled from DPRK's Mount Geumgang resort

SEOUL, April 10 (Xinhua) -- South Korean officials working at the construction site of an inter-Korean family reunion facility in Mount Geumgang resort were expelled by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported on Thursday.

South Korean officials withdrew from the construction site in DPRK between 4:30 to 5 p.m.(0730 to 0800 GMT) under the request of the DPRK side, Yonhap quoted an unnamed government spokesman as saying.

The family reunion facility in Mount Geumgang tourist complex was scheduled for completion in August.

It was the second case that DPRK expelled South Korean government officials from inter-Korean programs in DPRK since March 27, when 11 South Korean officials were demanded to pull outfrom the inter-Korean industrial complex in DPRK's border city of Kaesong.

The DPRK warned earlier that that it would forbid South Korean officials from getting across the demarcation line between South Korea and DPRK.

Meanwhile, Hyundai Asan, the operator of the tourist program in Mount Geumgang, said Thursday that the tour programs will not be affected by the expulsion of the government officials.

The expulsion is a matter between the government authorities of South Korea and DPRK and there is no problem in the inter-Korean tourism projects, said an official of Hyundai Asan.