The South Korean government confirmed on Thursday that a North Korean defector crossed the de facto maritime border in the Yellow Sea to defect to South Korea.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff stated that the military had secured an individual, believed to be from North Korea, and handed him over to the relevant authorities. However, it declined to release further details as the investigation is still underway. It added that no unusual activities from the North Korean military have been detected so far.
This individual reportedly attempted to defect through South Korea’s Gyodong island after crossing the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the Yellow Sea and was caught by the South Korean Marine Corps. The defector timed their crossing to coincide with low tide and moved on foot.
Initially, authorities identified two individuals, but ultimately, only one successfully defected.
The incident marks the first time in 15 months since a North Korean defected to South Korea through the Yellow Sea. The last defection was in May 2023 when a family of nine defected by crossing the NLL.