Kim Jong-nam murder trial set for October

A Malaysian court on Friday announced that the trial for the murder of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, will begin on October 2.

Shah Alam High Court judge Justice Azmi Ariffin set the date for the trial, reports The Malaysian Star daily.

He said plea from both the accused -- Indonesian Siti Aisyah and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong -- will be recorded on the first day of the trial.

Prosecutor Muhamad Iskandar Ahmad said the prosecution would be calling 30 to 40 witnesses, including 10 experts, to testify.

If convicted, both women face death penalty for murdering Kim Jong-nam at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport on February 13.

The two women allegedly smeared his face with the toxic VX nerve agent, a chemical deemed by the UN as a weapon of mass destruction.

Kim Jong-nam, the eldest son of the late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, had spoken out publicly against his family's dynastic control of the isolated, nuclear-armed nation.

Aisyah and Huong said that they believed they were carrying out a prank for a reality television show, and not a murder.

The case caused a diplomatic impasse between the two countries, which saw Malaysia deport some 140 North Korean workers in April.