White House: Securing Release Of Detainees In North Korea A Top Priority

President Barack Obama walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Friday, Aug. 29, 2014, as he travels to Westchester County, N.Y., and Newport, R.I. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

WASHINGTON, Sept 1 (Reuters) - The White House said on Monday it was continuing to do all that it can to secure the release of three Americans detained in North Korea, after they made a televised appeal for help from the U.S. government.

The three spoke to the cable channel CNN on Monday, with one of the prisoners saying his health was failing and another describing his situation as "urgent."

"We have seen the reports of interviews with the three American citizens detained in North Korea," Patrick Ventrell, a spokesman for the White House National Security Council, said in a statement.

"Securing the release of U.S. citizens is a top priority and we have followed these cases closely in the White House. We continue to do all we can to secure their earliest possible release," he said.

(Reporting by Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Dan Grebler)

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