Eccentric basketball star Dennis Rodman's bizarre outburst about an American citizen jailed in North Korea has drawn widespread criticism, including from the prisoner's family. Rodman is in North Korea with other former NBA players for a basketball game against a local team that's due to take place Wednesday, the birthday of the country's leader Kim Jong Un. Rodman, 52, who visited North Korea three times previously in the past year, describes Kim as a beloved friend. During an exclusive interview from Pyongyang on Tuesday, he reacted angrily to a question from Chris Cuomo of CNN's "New Day" about whether he was planning to ask North Korean leaders about Kenneth Bae, a U.S. citizen who was sentenced to 15 years in a labor camp by North Korea last year on charges he intended to topple the government.
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Sister of American held prisoner says the family is outraged by Rodman
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"Do you understand what he did in this country?" Rodman asks CNN about Kenneth Bae
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Bill Richardson says Rodman "crossed a line" in his comments from North Korea
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The NBA commissioner says he disapproves of the way the trip is being carried out
Kenneth Bae
Kenneth Bae
@placeholder, a married father of three, has suffered a series of health problems during his detention and has been transferred from the labor camp to a hospital.
Kenneth Bae
Kenneth Bae
"He was in a position to do some good and to help advocate for @placeholder," she said.
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But @placeholder government officials have said that they have nothing to do with the visits and that attention should be focused on the brutality of Kim's regime.
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"I love my friend," Rodman said in a reference to @placeholder.
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We have to go back to @placeholder and take the abuse.
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Rodman predicted his efforts and those of his fellow athletes would eventually "open the door" to @placeholder.
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@placeholder had invited the American players as a kind of "cultural exchange" and to "put smiles on people's faces," not to influence the country's leaders, Smith said.
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North Korea had invited the @placeholder players as a kind of "cultural exchange" and to "put smiles on people's faces," not to influence the country's leaders, Smith said.
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He said that the league didn't sanction the trip or collaborate with @placeholder's group.