N.Korea warns U.S. could 'pay dearly' for human rights criticism - KCNA

North Korea criticized the United States for taking issue with its human rights record on Saturday, saying Washington's "verbal abuse" would only aggravate the already tense situation on the Korean Peninsula, state news agency KCNA reported.

The KCNA statement, attributed to a foreign ministry spokesperson, warned that if the United States tried to take issue with the North's system of government by citing human rights problems, it would "pay dearly".