United States Sanctions North Korea Over Sony Cyber Attack

 The US had accused North Korea of having a hand in the cyber attack on Sony Pictures. The hack had been targetted at the movie 'The Interview', which revolves around a plot to kill North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

Honolulu:  The US is imposing sanctions on North Korea in retaliation for the cyber attack against Sony Pictures Entertainment.

US President Barack Obama signed an executive order on Friday authorizing the sanctions. Although the US has already sanctioned North Korea over its nuclear program, these are the first sanctions punishing Pyongyang for alleged cyber attacks.

The Obama administration says the sanctions affect three North Korean entities, including a government intelligence agency and a North Korean arms dealer. The US is also sanctioning 10 individuals who work for those entities or the North Korean government.

Those sanctioned are barred from using the US financial system, and Americans are prohibited from doing business with them.

The White House says this is just the first part of the US response to the Sony incident.