PYONGYANG, July 15 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republicof Korea (DPRK) confirmed Sunday that it had shut down its Yongbyon nuclear facilities.

    "We have shut down the nuclear facilities at Yongbyon after we received the first shipment of heavy oil on Friday", the official KCNA news agency reported, citing a spokesman of DPRK Foreign Ministry.

    This is the first DPRK official confirmation about the shutdown of its nuclear facilities, which came hours after a 10-member team of UN inspectors arrived in Pyongyang on Friday to verify and monitor the shutdown and sealing of Yongbyon nuclear facilities.