According to American officials, the American captured after crossing the border from South Korea into North Korea was a U.S. soldier.
The soldier’s means of entry, his motivations for doing so, and whether or not he was on duty were all unknown at the time.
In advance of a formal announcement, the four officials spoke to The Associated Press on Tuesday under the condition of anonymity.
Although it is uncommon for Americans or South Koreans to defect to North Korea, more than 30,000 North Koreans have done so since the 1950–1953 Korean War to escape political repression and economic hardship.
The passage took place during an uptick in hostilities related to North Korea’s nuclear program.
The U.S. citizen in custody was on a tour of the Korean border village of Panmunjom when he illegally entered the North, according to a tweet from the American-led U.N. Command in charge of the region earlier on Tuesday.
He is now being held by North Korea, according to the U.N. To put the incident right, Command is collaborating with its North Korean counterparts. The border incident was not immediately covered by North Korea’s state media.
The U.N. and South Korea jointly supervise Panmunjom, which is situated inside the 248-kilometer-long (154-mile-long) Demilitarized Zone. Following the end of the Korean War, Command and North Korea were established. There have been instances of bloodshed and gunshots there, but it has also served as a location for several talks and a well-liked tourist destination.
Panmunjom has attracted tourists from both sides who want to see what the final frontier of the Cold War looks like because of its blue huts that are built on top of concrete slabs that form a military demarcation line. At Panmunjom, no civilians reside.
Before the epidemic, when South Korea banned gatherings to contain COVID-19, tours to the village’s southern side allegedly drew some 100,000 tourists annually.
Last year, the excursions were fully restarted.
As one of their comrades ran toward freedom in November 2017, North Korean soldiers fired 40 shots. The soldier was struck five times before he was discovered beneath a mound of leaves on Panmunjom’s southern side. He made it through and is now in South Korea.
Two American army officers were slain by North Korean soldiers brandishing axes at Panmunjom in August 1976, which is considered to be the site of the most famous incident there.
The U.S. officials were dispatched to cut down a 40-foot (12-meter) tree that was blocking a checkpoint’s view.
In response to the strike, Washington sent nuclear-capable B-52 bombers toward the demilitarized zone (DMZ) to scare North Korea.
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