South Korean police detained a British man in the capital Seoul on Monday after he scaled 73 floors of the country's tallest building with his bare hands.
Korean media identified the man as free climber George King-Thompson, who was imprisoned for three months after scaling London's Shard in 2019.
More than 90 police, fire and emergency personnel were sent to Lotte World Tower after he was spotted climbing the building on Monday morning, according to a statement from Seoul's fire department.
He reached the 73rd floor of the building with no equipment before being removed by a gondola lift, it said.
Local media said he was spotted scaling the building with only climbing chalk at 7.20am local time, and that he continued his climbing attempt after the arrival of firefighters at 8am. Footage posted from inside a bedroom in the building showed him as he scaled the structure.
He was arrested on charges of trespassing and obstruction of business, The Korea Herald reported. It added that he was planning to parachute from the top of the building.
The tower, the tallest in South Korea, is home to apartments, offices and various retail stores.
Lotte Property & Development, which operates the tower, said the man didn’t suffer any major injuries.
The fire agency statement said he suffered a cut on his right knee.
Mr King-Thompson also climbed London's 36-story Stratosphere Tower in 2021, reaching the top in less than half an hour.
He said he picked the Seoul building because he was shocked by the flash floods that recently hit the area and wanted to raise awareness about the seriousness of climate change.
He is not the first person to scale the Lotte World Tower.
In 2018, French climber Alain Robert, known as “Spider-Man”, was also detained after climbing to the 75th floor.
Lotte officials said they heard he was eventually released and left South Korea after they told police they did not want to press charges for obstruction or trespassing.
AFP contributed to this report
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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1799 - First small pox vaccine administered
1846 - First public demonstration of anaesthesia in surgery
1861 - Louis Pasteur published his germ theory which proved that bacteria caused diseases
1895 - Discovery of x-rays
1923 - Heart valve surgery performed successfully for first time
1928 - Alexander Fleming discovers penicillin
1953 - Structure of DNA discovered
1952 - First organ transplant - a kidney - takes place
1954 - Clinical trials of birth control pill
1979 - MRI, or magnetic resonance imaging, scanned used to diagnose illness and injury.
1998 - The first adult live-donor liver transplant is carried out
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A fraudulent investment operation where the scammer provides fake reports and generates returns for old investors through money paid by new investors, rather than through ligitimate business activities.
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Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
