North Korea has banned Malaysians from leaving the country prompting Malaysia to respond with a similar ban, as police investigating the murder of Kim Jong-nam in Kuala Lumpur sought to question up to three men hiding in the North Korean embassy.

Malaysia was outraged by the murder of the North Korean leader's estranged half brother at Kuala Lumpur International Airport by assassins using VX nerve agent, a chemical listed by the United Nations as a weapon of mass destruction.

Police have identified eight North Koreans wanted in connection with the murder, including a senior North Korean diplomat and a state airline employee — two of the three believed to be hiding in the embassy. The only people charged so far are a Vietnamese woman and an Indonesian woman.

As the row escalated, North Korea's foreign ministry issued a temporary ban on Malaysians leaving in order to ensure the safety of its own diplomats and citizens in Malaysia.

Three arrests amid probe into death of North Korean leader's half-brother

All Malaysian citizens in the DPRK will be temporarily prohibited from leaving the country until the incident that happened in Malaysia is properly solved, the state-run Korea Central News Agency said, quoting a foreign ministry official.

In this period the diplomats and citizens of Malaysia may work and live normally under the same conditions and circumstances as before.

Malaysia reacted swiftly, condemning Pyongyang's action as hostage-taking and responded by barring all North Koreans from leaving the country.

"This abhorrent act, effectively holding our citizens hostage, is in total disregard of all international law and diplomatic norms," Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said in a statement, adding that he has summoned an emergency meeting of the National Security Council.

Mr Najib said he has also instructed the police "to prevent all North Korean citizens in Malaysia from leaving the country until we are assured of the safety and security of all Malaysians in North Korea".

Inside the daily life in North Korea Show all 19 1 /19 Inside the daily life in North Korea Inside the daily life in North Korea People reading a newspaper at the metro station Inside the daily life in North Korea Thoughts of the leaders on the tram. They have about a dozen of these on every tram, all with different thoughts Inside the daily life in North Korea Young people training for a big upcoming festival Inside the daily life in North Korea People at the Pyongyang's annual marathon Inside the daily life in North Korea Many stars on one of the trolleys in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea An intimidating poster in a primary school in North Korea. Inside the daily life in North Korea Solar panels installed on a street lamp. Inside the daily life in North Korea A poster on the window next to one of the venues we visited in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea Kids playing football next to the Arch of Triumph. After a while tourists were allowed to join, so some of us did Inside the daily life in North Korea Class in an educational center in Pyongyang (where people over 17 years old can attend any classes they choose after school, for free) Inside the daily life in North Korea People waving at me during the Pyongyang marathon Inside the daily life in North Korea People having a great time dancing at a public park Inside the daily life in North Korea A metro driver in a metro station in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea Fireworks to mark the birthday of the Eternal President Kim Il Sung on our last night in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea My wonderful tour guide at a public park Inside the daily life in North Korea One of the parks in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea A person rowing some boats for the day at a river in Pyongyang Inside the daily life in North Korea The National War Museum Inside the daily life in North Korea Public park in Pyongyang

Before the murder, North Korea could count Malaysia as one of its few friends outside of China. But Malaysia has since stopped visa-free travel and expelled North Korea's ambassador for questioning the impartiality of the murder investigation.

There are 11 Malaysians in North Korea, according to a Malaysian foreign ministry official, including three embassy staff, six family members, and two others.

Hundreds of North Koreans are believed to be in Malaysia, most of them students and workers. The focus, however, was on its embassy staff.

"We are trying to physically identify all the embassy staff who are here," deputy home minister Nur Jazlan Mohamed told reporters outside the North Korean embassy.

He said staff would not be allowed to leave the embassy "until we are satisfied of their numbers and where they are".

By early afternoon, Malaysian police had removed the tape and police car blocking the North Korean embassy driveway in a sign of easing tensions.

Loading....

Speaking at a news conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia's police chief said three of the North Koreans sought in connection with the murder had holed up at the embassy in the Malaysian capital.

"How much longer do they want to hide in the embassy... it is a matter of time before they come out," police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said.

"We will not raid the embassy building, we will wait for them to come out. We have got all the time," Mr Khalid said.

Aside from the suspects said to be hiding in the embassy, police have said four other North Koreans left Malaysia in the hours after the murder.

The only North Korean suspect to be apprehended was deported last week, released due to insufficient evidence.

US officials and South Korean intelligence suspect North Korean agents were behind the assassination of Kim Jong-nam, who had been living in Macau under China's protection. He had spoken out publicly against his family's dynastic rule of North Korea.

North Korea has refused to accept that the dead man is leader Kim Jong-un's half brother, and has suggested the victim died of a heart attack.

No next of kin have come forward to claim the body, but the Malaysian police chief said he was confident of obtaining DNA samples to formally identify the murdered man.