On the third and last day of a parliamentary hearing on the Kim Sun-il case, lawmakers grilled high-ranking officials over apparent security lapses that culminated in the murder of the South Korean hostage in Iraq.

On hand were the head of the National Information Service, Goh Young-gu, National Security Council Secretary-General Lee Jong-suk and presidential security advisor Kwon Jin-ho. They were questioned over the government's alleged failure to respond properly to the hostage crisis in June.

In particular, lawmakers from the main opposition Grand National Party upbraided the National Security Council for its supposedly inadequate response to terrorism, accusing it of ineffectively coordinating its efforts with other related government agencies.

The panel also attempted to shed light on why the Associated Press (AP) edited an original 13-minute videotape showing the Korean hostage before his death in Iraq down to a four and-a-half minute segment for public release.

Also during the hearing, an Iraqi lawyer, identified only as "E" and an Iraqi employee of Gana Trading Company testified on the alleged negotiations that took place with Kim's captors and on the Gana company president's ill-fated efforts to rescue him.