SEOUL, OCT 11 – A North Korean defector is suspected of crossing the de facto western maritime border last month and is now in the South, Seoul’s military said today, days after Pyongyang said it would close the border between the two Koreas.
North Korea’s military said this week it will permanently close and blockade the southern border while completely blocking road and rail links to the South and building strong defense structures.
Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Kim Myung-soo told lawmakers yesterday that North Korea’s latest move is aimed at preventing external incursions by internal personnel into the South.
“Our military detained an individual suspected of being from North Korea in the West Sea in mid-September and handed him over to the relevant authorities,” Seoul’s military told AFP.
“There are no unusual movements from the North Korean military, and we cannot confirm any further details,” he added.
South Korean news agency, Yonhap said the incident involved a North Korean fleeing on a wooden boat.
The latest case follows two recent defections, one across the inter-Korean land border and through the neutral zone of the Han River, both reported by Seoul last August. – AFP
