Seoul confirms North Korea’s defection as Pyongyang seals border

The latest case follows two recent defections: one across the heavily fortified inter-Korean land border and the other through the neutral zone of the Han River Estuary, both reported by Seoul in August.

South Korea said in July that Pyongyang had planted tens of thousands of new landmines and built barriers in the border area, resulting in “several casualties” among the North’s soldiers when the mines exploded.

Tens of thousands of North Koreans have fled south since the peninsula was divided by war in the 1950s.

Most defectors first travel overland to neighboring China, then enter a third country such as Thailand before finally reaching South Korea.

The number of successful escapes fell significantly from 2020 after the North tightened its borders to prevent the spread of COVID-19, reportedly with orders to shoot on sight along the land border with China.

But the number of defectors reaching the South nearly tripled last year to 196, Seoul said in January, as more and more elite diplomats and students tried to escape.

Experts say defectors were likely hit by harsh living conditions, including food shortages and inadequate responses to natural disasters, while living in the isolated north.