North Korea says the American soldier who ran across its border last month was escaping “inhuman maltreatment” from the US Army. Private Travis King created a diplomatic storm when he broke away from a tour group and crossed the heavily fortified zone between North and South Korea. He had been on an army posting in South Korea but was about to be sent home for misconduct. State-run media in North Korea reported that King was escaping “racial discrimination” in the US and might “seek refuge” in the Hermit Kingdom or another country. The US Defense Department says it’s focused on bringing King home – and his mother has appealed to North Korea to treat him humanely. In 2016, US college student Otto Warmbier was detained for more than a year in the secretive country – and died not long after he was returned home.