Seoul: Two North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the heavily fortified inter-Korean border after a North Korean soldier defected to South Korea earlier this week, military sources revealed. The armed soldiers moved past the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) and advanced approximately 200 meters from a South Korean guard post on October 19.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the North Korean soldiers were apparently chasing the defector who had crossed into South Korea earlier that day through the central section of the border. In response, the South Korean military issued warning broadcasts and fired warning shots, which prompted the North Korean soldiers to retreat.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) reported there were no unusual movements from the North Korean military following the defection. Initially, the South Korean military failed to identify the North Korean soldiers when they crossed the MDL, instead detecting them about 850 meters south of the land border.
"The North Korean soldiers were not spotted when they crossed the MDL, as the guard post in question has limited visibility, being situated in a heavily wooded area with a mountain to the north," a military source noted. A JCS official stated the military decided not to disclose the border intrusion due to the unclear circumstances surrounding the pursuit, noting a time gap of approximately seven hours between the defection and the border crossing.
Some observers suggest that the decision to keep the incident under wraps might have been an effort to avoid escalating tensions with North Korea.