North Korea Blasts 'Dotard' Trump for 'Wicked' Jerusalem Decision

North Korea blasted President Donald Trump on Saturday for his "reckless, wicked act" of recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital and called him a "dotard" anew.

"Considering the fact that the mentally deranged dotard openly called for a total destruction of a sovereign state at the UN, this action is not so surprising," said a foreign ministry spokesman according to the state-run KCNA news agency.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in September first called Trump a "dotard," which Merriam-Webster defined as "a person in his or her dotage," with "dotage" meaning "a state or period of senile decay marked by decline of mental poise and alertness."

The spokesman said that the move by Trump "clearly shows to the whole world who is the destroyer of world peace and security, pariah and rogue in the international community."

North Korea stated it "strongly condemns" Trump's announcement last Wednesday and his decision to move the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which angered Muslims around the world.

"The U.S. will be held accountable for all consequences from this reckless, wicked act," the spokesman said.

North Korea also expressed "firm support and solidarity for Palestinians and Arab peoples struggling to win their legitimate rights." The statement demonstrated North Korea's allegiance to countries that despise Israel, including Iran, which in the past had collaborated with the North on missile development.

Iran called on countries around the world to defy Israel's claim to Jerusalem, which has religious significance for Jews, Christians and Muslims and was claimed by Israelis and Palestinians. Arab and Muslim countries faced "a historical and decisive test," the Iranian military's chief of staff Major General Mohammad Bagheri said on Thursday.

Trump on Saturday afternoon had not fired back at North Korea's latest fighting words. Last month, he called Kim "short and fat" and dubbed him "rocket man." In August, Trump threatened to unleash "fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which this world has never seen before."

Tensions between the U.S. and North Korea have elevated since the latter on November 29 tested a missile test that was reportedly capable of reaching the U.S. The U.S. conducted large-scale, joint military drills with South Korea around the Korean Peninsula through last Friday, an exercise Pyongyang considered a "grave provocation" that put the region on the "brink" of nuclear warfare.

U.S. officials worried that Trump's combative rhetoric could spark a war with North Korea.