This June 14, 2019 file photo shows the Republic of Korea's army soldiers patrolling the DMZ Peace Trail in the Demilitarized Zone in Goseong, ROK. (AHN YOUNG-JOON / AP)
SEOUL – A person from the Republic of Korea has crossed the heavily fortified border in a rare defection to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the ROK's military said on Sunday.
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The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it carried out a search operation after detecting the person around 9:20 pm on Saturday on the eastern side of the Demilitarised Zone separating the two Koreas.
"We've confirmed that the person crossed the Military Demarcation Line border about 10:40 pm and defected to the North," the JCS said.
The ROK's Joint Chiefs of Staff 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 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 the ROK, came as the DPRK carries out strict anti-coronavirus measures since shutting borders in early 2020, though it has not confirmed any infections.
Cross-border relations soured after denuclearization negotiations between Pyongyang and Washington stalled since a failed summit in 2019.
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The ROK and a US-led UN force are technically still at war with the DPRK since the 1950-1953 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.