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South Korean ambassador, a Cincinnati native, says he is "doing well" after stabbing

U.S. Embassy, Seoul, South Korea

Mark Lippert, the U.S. Ambassador to South Korea and a Cincinnati native, tweeted out this morning that he is "doing well" after being slashed on the right cheek by a blade-wielding man at an event this morning in Seoul.

NPR reported a State Department spokesperson saying that Lippert, a native of Mariemont, was in a hospital in Seoul and that his wound was not life-threatening.

Lippert was speaking at a breakfast conference in South Korea's capital.

South Korean television reported that the 55-year-old man who attacked Lippert, screamed "South and North Korea should be unified." The man was arrested by police. The two Koreas have been divided for over 60 years.

Lippert, a former U.S. Navy SEAL, was named ambassador last year. He had been a foreign policy aide to Barack Obama both in the Senate and the White House. He also held the title of Assistant Secretary of State for Asian Affairs in the Obama administration.

Howard Wilkinson is in his 50th year of covering politics on the local, state and national levels.