Sharjah24 – Reuters: A South Korean has crossed the heavily fortified border in a rare defection to North Korea, South Korea's military said on Sunday.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it carried out a search operation after detecting the person around 9:20 p.m. (1220 GMT) on Saturday on the eastern side of the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas.
"We've confirmed that the person crossed the Military Demarcation Line border about 10:40 p.m. (1340 GMT) and defected to the North," the JCS said.
The JCS said it could not confirm whether the person was alive, but sent a notice to the North via a military hotline asking for protection.
The border crossing, which is illegal in South Korea, came as North Korea carries out strict anti-coronavirus measures since shutting borders in early 2020, though it has not confirmed any infections.
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