North Korean Defector Crosses DMZ On Foot

The DMZ is constantly guarded and under heavy surveillance by both sides

A North Korean man has successfully crossed the Demilitarized Zone and defected to the South.

The man, judged to be in his early 20s, crossed the border around 120 miles northeast of Seoul before he was spotted by South Korean soldiers at a DMZ guardpost.

This marks the first defection across the border since March 2010, when a KPA soldier crossed the border to the South.

No doubt the question on the KPA generals' minds is how the man managed to walk across one of the world's most heavily guarded and militarized borders in the world without being caught.

North Koreans Arrive at Yeonpyeong Island

Yeonpyeong Island was the site of yet more North Korean 'arrivals' today

However this time it was not artillery shells that were landing, but people.

31 North Korean civilians arrived at Yeonpyeong Island via fishing boat on Saturday, Korean local time. The new arrivals were all promptly transported to Incheon, mainland South Korea, for questioning.

Early reports from an anonymous source within the ROK government suggested that the North Koreans wished to defect. However, the government later released an official statement declaring that the North Koreans had not expressed any desire to defect.

How the North Koreans managed to travel across the Northern Limit Line unscathed is currently a topic of great interest for South Korean authorities.