North Korean Turncoat

A North Korean soldier defected to South Korea this weekend by passing between the two countries' heavily-armed and guarded demilitarized zone. The unnamed North Korean shot two of his superior officers and then warned the South Koreans that he was crossing the border and defecting by yelling through a loud speaker. He was taken into custody by the South Koreans upon crossing. There has been no real action taken by North Korea both diplomatically and militarily in response to this recent defection. Defection from North Korea is not unheard of. Since the cease-fire of the Korean War in 1953, roughly 24,000 N. Koreans have fled to the democratic S. Korea seeking asylum from the communist North. However, most defectors into the S. Korea travel through China and avoid the demilitarized zone due to its heightened level of security. There are only few instances such as this where physical crossing of the land border between the North and South Korea occur.


Here's the link to the article: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2012/10/06/north-korea-soldier-defects/1616707/

Aaron Langer