N Korea says to freeze assets of S Korean firms at Kaesong

Seoul: North Korea said on Thursday it was expelling all South Korean workers from the Kaesong industrial zone and freezing the assets of companies operating there, calling the South's decision to suspend operations at the zone a "declaration of war."

The industrial park has been declared a military control zone, the North's agency that handles ties with the South said in a statement carried by the North's official KCNA news agency.

South Korea on Wednesday said it was suspending operations of the jointly run factory park just north of the border in response to the North's weekend rocket launch, and gave South Koreans until Saturday to quit the complex.