A giant Egyptian telecoms firm has launched the first hi-tech mobile phone network in North Korea.

Orascom telecom says it is investing $400m (£262m) in the service over four years.

North Korea is one of the world’s most tightly controlled societies and it is still unclear who will be able to use the system.

The country launched a basic network in 2002 but most citizens have since been banned from using mobile phones.

To read this BBC News report in full, see news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7784211.stm.