US Navy Seals shot and killed a number of North Korean civilians during a botched covert mission to plant a listening device in the nuclear-armed country during high-stakes diplomatic negotiations in 2019, the New York Times reported on Friday.

Citing unidentified sources, including current and former military officials with knowledge of the still-classified details, the newspaper said Donald Trump approved the operation during his first administration, as he was involved in historic talks with the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un.

The plan was designed to fix a “blind spot” in US intelligence that would allow the US to intercept the North Korean leader’s communications, potentially giving Trump an advantage ahead of the summit between the two leaders in 2019.

But it unraveled when the detachment of Navy Seals came across North Korean civilians who appeared to be diving for shellfish, the Times reported. The American forces opened fire, killing all those on the small fishing vessel, the report said, without specifying the number of casualties.

Neither the US nor the North Korean government has made the botched operation public. Before approving the plan, the White House had been concerned that even a small military action against North Korea could provoke a “catastrophic retaliation”.

A classified Pentagon review later concluded the killings were justified under the rules of engagement, the report said.

In 2019, the Seals were dispatched to North Korean waters in a nuclear-powered submarine, and then deployed in two mini-subs in frigid waters to reach the shore. A group of eight Seals were then supposed to sneak past North Korean border forces, install the device, and then escape undetected. However, the operation was disrupted by the attack on the civilians, and the Seals left without installing the device.

The newspaper also revealed that the plan was based on a similar 2005 operation approved by George W Bush.

The White House, the Pentagon and the US embassy in Seoul did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the report.

Since Trump’s last summit with Kim in 2019, talks have fallen apart and North Korea has forged ahead with its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile program.

Trump this week said that US forces had killed 11 people in a strike on a boat in international waters that he claimed was carrying drugs to the United States. The White House has released few details about the operation, which it claimed targeted members of Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua gang.

Lammy appointment follows resignation of left-wing champion Angela Rayner, who stepped down over a tax scandal.

United Kingdom foreign minister David Lammy has been appointed as the country’s new deputy prime minister, replacing Angela Rayner after she resigned amid a tax scandal.

Rayner’s resignation on Friday for breaching ministerial code after underpaying tax on her flat prompted a major cabinet reshuffle, with Lammy’s elevation to deputy prime minister among a raft of new appointments.

The departure of Rayner – a figure viewed by many as a ballast of the left and a potential successor to Prime Minister Keir Starmer – has created turmoil in the Labour Party, which now trails hard-right firebrand Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party in national polls.

In a letter to Starmer on Friday, Rayner conceded she “did not meet the highest standards” and would resign from her roles as housing minister and deputy leader of Labour.

“I deeply regret my decision to not seek additional specialist tax advice,” she said, having last week admitted to underpaying a surcharge on the flat. She said she took “full responsibility for this error”.

Starmer, whose government has endured a series of crises since taking power in July 2024, replied that he was “very sad” to lose her from government, but added: “You will remain a major figure in our party.”

“In losing her, Keir Starmer loses perhaps the closest link the Labour Party has to its working-class roots,” reported Al Jazeera’s Jonah Hull from Birmingham in the UK.

Starmer’s reshuffle also saw Yvette Cooper moved from the interior ministry to replace Lammy as foreign secretary, the prime minister’s office said. Shabana Mahmood, who was justice secretary, replaces Cooper as home secretary; while Lammy now takes on the role of justice secretary in addition to his position as deputy prime minister.

House of Commons leader Lucy Powell and Scotland secretary Ian Murray confirmed in statements on Friday that they were leaving government, following earlier reports they had been fired.

In a post on X, Powell said Starmer had told her he intended to replace her with a new Commons leader.

“This has not been an easy time for the government. People want to see change and improvements to their difficult lives,” Powell said.

A Statement from me: pic.twitter.com/5NmhJeKDRV

— Lucy Powell MP (@LucyMPowell) September 5, 2025

‘Complexity’ in Rayner tax scandal

Rayner disclosed on Wednesday that she had underpaid so-called stamp duty on a seaside flat in southern England following days of reports suggesting that she had saved 40,000 pounds ($53,000) by removing her name from the deeds of another property.

After looking into the case, ethics chief Laurie Magnus said the rules “entailed a considerable degree of complexity” and recognised that Rayner had twice been advised that the lower rate of stamp duty was applicable.

That advice, however, was qualified by the admission that it did not constitute expert tax advice.

Rayner’s failure to seek further guidance meant she “cannot be considered to have met the highest possible standards of proper conduct”, said Magnus.

Rayner, who became a single mother at the age of 16 after growing up in poverty, worked her way up from the shop floor as a union representative, forging a lifelong involvement with the Labour Party.

Often tipped to become Labour leader one day, she has been a top target for political attacks by the Conservatives and right-wing media.

The Commission’s multibilllion-euro fine falls short of the €4.34 billion fine the EU executive slapped on Google in 2018 over abuse of dominance related to Android mobile devices, but is higher than the €2.42 billion fine the firm faced for favoring its own comparison-shopping service in 2017.

The Commission’s decision comes as a parallel case before the U.S. courts will soon come to trial.

In April, a U.S. federal judge found that Google had illegally maintained a monopoly in display search advertising, and a trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 22.

The U.S. government is seeking a divestment of Google’s assets in that trial.

In a statement, Google’s Global Head of Regulatory Affairs Lee-Anne Mulholland said that the firm will appeal the Commission’s decision.

“It imposes an unjustified fine and requires changes that will hurt thousands of European businesses by making it harder for them to make money,” said Mulholland.

This story has been updated.