jpnn.com, KOREA - A South Korean has defected to North Korea by breaching a heavily fortified border, the South's military said on Sunday, revealing the rare event.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it launched a search operation after it detected the resident's presence on Saturday at 9:20 p.m. local time in the eastern part of the Demilitarized Zone, the area that separates South Korea and North Korea.
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"We've confirmed that the person crossed the Military Demarcation Line border about 10:40 p.m. and defected to the North," the JCS said.
The JCS could not confirm whether the person was alive, but it had sent a notification to North Korea through a special military channel asking them to provide security.
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The crossing, which is illegal in South Korea, comes at a time when North Korea is implementing strict measures to deal with the spread of the coronavirus.
Public anger and political commotion arose after North Korean troops shot dead a South Korean fishing official, who went missing at sea in September 2020.
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The North Korean government in the capital, Pyongyang, said the incident occurred amid regulations to deal with Covid-19. Pyongyang later apologized.
Two months earlier, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un declared a state of national emergency and closed a city on the border.
The closures came after a North Korean defector, who had symptoms of Covid-19, illegally crossed the border from South Korea into North Korea.
North Korea itself has extended the implementation of a regional lockdown and restrictions on movement between provinces.
The move made the number of North Korean defectors arriving in South Korea the lowest in history.
Relations between the two Koreas became bleak after talks between North Korea and the United States on nuclear disarmament ended in a stalemate following the 2019 summit between North Korean and US leaders. (ant/dil/mcr20/jpnn)
This news has been broadcast on JPNN.com with the title: Peristiwa Langka, Warga Korsel Pertaruhkan Nyawa demi Membelot ke Korut