Disturbing new reports are coming in stating that North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has ordered his troops and police to shoot anyone who goes within a kilometer (0.6 miles) of the country’s border with China.

The U.K. Express reported that this move is meant to stop the spread of COVID-19. Until very recently, North Korea denied having any cases of coronavirus at all. It was only last month that Kim finally admitted that coronavirus “could have entered” the country.

One resident of North Korea’s Hamgyong province said that they had been told that the policy “will be in effect along the entire North Korea-China border until the coronavirus pandemic ends.”

“Police in the city of Hoeryong issued an emergency notice from the Ministry of Social Security, saying they would kill anyone within a kilometer of the North Korea-China border regardless of their reason for being there,” the resident explained. “After announcing the declaration, the police department told the public, ‘The coronavirus has spread everywhere except our country, so the enemy is trying to infiltrate the border by sending the virus across it.'”

“They stressed the need to raise awareness among the border area residents and establish a system to report strangers and activities of the enemy,” the North Korean resident added.

This policy is in place for the entire 880-mile North Korean/Chinese border, which extends across four provinces. Though North Korea has not officially admitted to having any COVID-19 cases, the city of Kaesong was put into lockdown for three weeks last month after a suspected case was detected.

Kim has since declared a national emergency and banned travel between provinces. Additional lockdown measures were put in place across North Korea after a man claimed to have coronavirus symptoms, but the World Health Organization later stated to the public that his results were inconclusive.

The North Korean source added that police near the border have been sent additional ammunition to help enforce the new policy.

“They are even saying that no one will be held responsible for shooting deaths that occur within a kilometer of the border area,” the source said.