Two women accused of poisoning the half brother of North Korea's ruler Kim Jong Un in an airport assassination are expected to plead not guilty in court on Friday, their lawyers said.

A dispute over custody of the body of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's half-brother is raging between Malaysia and Pyongyang as inquiries continue into his apparent assassination.

Just a couple of weeks back, a trip through the Far East happened to briefly coincide with a trip by Barcelona through the same part of the world.