N Korea seeks UN aid

North Korea, hit by severe flooding, has asked the United Nations for emergency aid, a U.N. spokesman said. Martin Nesirky, a spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, told a news briefing Thursday North Korea had asked the United Nations to release emergency supplies as heavy rains in the country have killed scores of people and left tens of thousands more homeless, China's Xinhua news agency reported. "Torrential rains across (North Korea) have resulted in widespread flooding, according to the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)," Nesirky was quoted as saying, adding the North Korean "has requested that the U.N. release its prepositioned emergency stocks, including food and fuel." Xinhua said North Korean state media have reported that more than 100 have died and that tens of thousands of people have lost their homes. The report said the flooding is another blow to the country when it is already facing food shortage due to a severe drought in the last few months.