North Korea said it has detained US student for a 'hostile act'

An American university student has been detained in North Korea.

The regime said the student has committed a "hostile act" and it was investigating.

The detained student is believed to be Otto Frederick Warmbier, studying at the University of Virginia.

The agency said Mr Warmbier entered North Korea with an “aim to destroy the country's unity".

Warmbier was on a five day trip to the country and has been detained since 2 January, Gareth Johnson of the Young Pioneer Tours travel agency - which provided the tour to North Korea - told Reuters.

He added Warmbier was detained ahead of a flight back to China.

"We are in touch with Otto's family, the U.S. State Department and the Embassy of Sweden in Pyongyang and doing all we can to secure his release," Johnson told Reuters.

American officials at the US embassy in South Korea are aware of his current detainment.

The state-run KCNA news agency said the person entered North Korea as a tourist and was "was caught committing a hostile act against the state," which it said was "tolerated and manipulated by the US government".

KCNA said Warmbier had entered the country with an "aim to destroy the country's unity". It did not elaborate.

North Korea has a long history of detaining foreigners, and the US and Canadian governments advise against travel there.

Pyongyang has in the past used detained Americans to extract high-profile visits from the United States, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations.

North Korea conducted a nuclear test at the beginning of January, angering the US and China.