North Koreans face punishment for spreading "rumors" about soldiers killed while fighting in Russia, according to a recent report.Newsweek reached out to the North Korean embassy in China by email with a request for comment.Why It MattersThe Kim Jong Un regime has sent upwards of 11,000 troops to Russia, according to U.S. and South Korean estimates. After a brief training period last fall, the North Korean troops were dispatched to Kursk, where Russian forces have been struggling to contain a Ukrainian counteroffensive since August.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said as many as 4,000—or about one-third—of the North Koreans believed to be deployed, have been killed or injured, though this figure has not been independently verified. Neither Moscow nor Pyongyang have publicly acknowledged the North Korean boots on the ground.What To KnowDespite the North Korean regime's tight control on the flow of information, citizens are privately raising questions about the fighting as casualties mount, Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported, citing locals who spoke on the condition of anonymity for safety reasons.Authorities have reportedly ordered citizens at workplace and neighborhood watch meetings to inform on anyone "spreading rumors"—and warned that those who fail to do so will themselves face punishment.Employees at the Tokchon Motor Complex in South Pyongan, the province north of the capital Pyongyang, are among those to have received this directive, according to one source."As news spreads of 11th Corps soldiers continuing to die in Russia, it seems they are trying to suppress the rumors," one contact said.Under North Korea's criminal code offenders could risk up to 10 years in a labor camp—or even the death penalty if the offense is considered anti-state propaganda, per RFA.The news agency previously cited sources who said authorities have been quietly issuing death certificates to family members of those killed fighting in Kursk. The bereaved have reportedly been told their loved ones died during "sacred combat training in honor of the motherland," but not the circumstances or location of their death.In addition to soldiers, South Korea's top intelligence agency said Monday that Pyongyang has sent thousands of laborers to construction sites across Russia to address workforce shortages caused by the war. This would be a violation of a United Nations Security Council resolution that bars U.N. member states from granting work permits to North Korean nationals.What People Are SayingA resident of Sinpo, North Korea, told RFA: "The news that soldiers were dispatched to Russia spread widely and most people know about it …News is also spreading that Russia is giving foreign currency equal to the number of soldiers dispatched to Russia, so public opinion is bound to boil over."Seth Jones, director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank's International Security Program, said during a podcast released Friday: "This is straight attrition war…and that's the way that the Russians have been using North Korean forces—even more elite units—is to try to control territory that Ukrainians have seized in Kursk Oblast, and these are strategies and operations that involve heavy casualties. From Vladimir Putin's perspective, it's OK."What's Next?After suffering heavy casualties, North Korean troops temporarily withdrew from the front lines in Kursk in January, according to Ukrainian officials cited by news agencies. However, in his Friday evening address to the nation, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that thousands have rejoined the fighting.It's unclear how much more Kim Jong Un will contribute to Russia's war effort, but South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff expect him to send additional troops and equipment.