North Korea Applauds 'Knife Attack of Justice' on U.S. Ambassador

A man opposed to the joint South Korea-U.S. military drills attacked the American ambassador in Seoul, slashing his face and arms as he was about to give a speech Thursday morning.

North Korea quickly called the stabbing a "knife attack of justice," and said it reflected "anti-U.S. sentiment" in South Korea.

The U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, Mark Lippert, was in stable condition after undergoing more than two hours of surgery and 80 stitches to his face. He will likely remain hospitalized for three to four days, Dr. Jung Nam-shik at Yonsei Severance Hospital said.

Police identified the suspect as Kim Ki-Jong, a 55-year-old man with a history of unpredictable behavior.

In 2010, he received a suspended two-year prison sentence for throwing a piece of concrete at a Japanese Ambassador to South Korea, according to the Yonhap news agency.

The motive for his attack Thursday? He wanted to an end to the South Korea-U.S. military drills to better North-South relations, police said. The drills are held annually and are met with harsh criticism from North Korea.

Pyongyang called the attack "just punishment for U.S. warmongers," according to its official news agency, KCNA.

South Korean President Park Geun-hye, on the other hand, condemned the incident.

"This incident is not only a physical attack on the U.S. ambassador, but an attack on the South Korea-U.S. alliance and it can never be tolerated."

The attack

Lippert attended the event organized by the Korea Council For Reconciliation and Cooperation, and the suspect in the attack was a member of the council, said local police chief Yoon Myung-seon.

The organization advocates peaceful reunification between the two Koreas. Kim was one of its 181 members, all of whom were invited to the event.

There was no request from the U.S. Embassy for security at the event, Seoul police said. There were three police officers on duty at the entrance and 15 more on standby, police said during a news conference.

The attacker, who was seated at another table, ran to the ambassador's right side yelling something that sounded like anti-U.S. sentiments.

"When the man jumped on the ambassador, I stood up and jumped on the man and they both fell on the ground," a witness, Jang Yoon Seok told CNN affiliate YTN. "Luckily I got on top of the man's back and could press him to the floor. Then others came to hold him on the floor."

Jang said he later saw the knife on the table, which had a wooden handle and did not look like a sophisticated weapon. Seoul police said a knife, about 10 inches long, was used in the assault and the suspect brought it from home.

Videos showed the suspect pinned on the floor, rolled into a blanket and carried out of the building.

He was heard shouting, "The South Korea-U.S. military drills must stop."

The joint South Korea-U.S. military drills began earlier this week.