North Korea court sentences U.S. student to 15 years hard labour - Xinhua

U.S. student Otto Warmbier cries at court in an undisclosed location in North Korea, in this photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang on March 16, 2016. REUTERS/KCNA

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea's supreme court sentenced American student Otto Warmbier, who was arrested while visiting the country, to 15 years of hard labour on Wednesday for crimes against the state, a punishment Washington condemned as politically motivated.

The U.S. State Department called the sentence "unduly harsh" and White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was "increasingly clear" that North Korea sought to use U.S. citizens as pawns to pursue a political agenda.