Trump says 3 Americans held in N.Korea heading to US

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - Three Americans held in North Korean captivity are on their way home, President Donald Trump said Wednesday.

Trump said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo "and his 'guests'" will be arriving from North Korea early Thursday morning at an Air Force base just outside of the capital.

"I am pleased to inform you that Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in the air and on his way back from North Korea with the 3 wonderful gentlemen that everyone is looking so forward to meeting," Trump wrote on Twitter.

The White House later confirmed in a statement that the three "gentlemen" Trump alluded to are Kim Hak-song, Kim Sang-duk -- also known as Tony Kim -- and Kim Dong-chul. Kim Hak-song and Kim Sang-duk have been held captive on dubious charges of carrying out "hostile acts" since 2017, while Kim Dong-chul has been in North Korean custody since 2015.

Their arrival will come as Trump prepares for a historic bilateral meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, which Trump said has been scheduled. He did not say when or where the meeting will take place.

The White House said Trump appreciates the North Korean leader's release of the detainees and views it as a "positive gesture of goodwill".

Upon news of the releases, Tony Kim's family thanked Trump "for engaging directly with North Korea" in a statement posted on Facebook.

All three Americans appear to be in good condition and were able to walk onto the military plane taking them home without assistance, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement.

The last American to be released from North Korean captivity, university student Otto Warmbier, died shortly after arriving in the U.S. in a comatose state in June 2017.