Officials in Kuala Lumpur say there are 11 Malaysians currently in North Korea — three working at the embassy, two UN employees and six family members. About 1,000 North Koreans are believed to be in Malaysia, until recently one of the few countries where North Koreans could travel without a visa.

s death has infuriated North Korea, which has dismissed Malaysia’s investigation into Kim Jong-nam’the inquiry as politically motivated and demanded the body be turned over to them immediately. North Korea’s surprise order came on Tuesday morning, when the official Korean Central News Agency said the country was banning Malaysians from leaving “until the safety of the diplomats and citizens of [North Korea] in Malaysia is fully guaranteed through the fair settlement of the case”.

It was not clear, however, what would constitute a “fair settlement”.

North Korea said Malaysia’s diplomats and citizens “may work and live normally” during the temporary exit ban.