Malaysia to sweep Kuala Lumpur airport for "radioactive" material

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysian authorities will sweep the international airport and other locations for radioactive material, the police chief said on Friday, following the murder of Kim Jong Nam in which VX nerve agent, a highly toxic chemical, was used.

"(We are looking to) sweep all locations that we knew the suspects went to. We will get the experts from the atomic energy department to go to the location and sweep it to see if radioactive (material) is still there," police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said.

It was the first time police had mentioned "radioactive material" and he did not elaborate on what could "still" be there.

Kim, the estranged half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, died after being assaulted at Kuala Lumpur International Airport on February 13.

Authorities found traces of VX, classified as a weapon of mass destruction by the United Nations, on the body.