at the heavily guarded Joint Security Area.
As troops stationed in the frontline are believed to be handpicked for their loyalty, this could
severely bruise the regime's military pride.
He was shot at by men from his side, but was picked up by South Korean soldiers and was
taken to the hospital.
For details on the daring escape, we turn to our Kwon Jang-ho
The Joint Security Area -- located on the border between the two Koreas
and the only place where soldiers from the two sides stand face-to-face.
And at three-thirty-one PM on Monda, a lone North Korean soldier ran from a guard post
on the northern side, and crossed over the Military Demarcation Line into South Korean
territory.
The soldier suffered from gunshot wounds to his shoulder and elbow from North Korean forces
while defecting.
Upon hearing the shots, South Korean soldiers raised the alarm, but the defector was not
discovered until 25 minutes later, collapsed on the ground, 50-meters from the border and
bleeding from his wounds.
(Korean) Our soldiers safely retrieved the defector,
and urgently evacuated him to hospital to treat his injuries.
He was airlifted by a United Nations Command helicopter to Ajou University Medical Center
in Suwon, just south of Seoul, where he underwent surgery.
The defector is thought to be in his twenties or thirties, and wore a uniform of low rank.
Defecting through the JSA is extremely rare, with only two previous instances in 1998 and
2007.
South Korean authorities have reassured that there was no altercation between South and
North Korean soldiers, but added that Seoul will remain alert to any possible provocations.
It's been almost two months since North Korea last carried out a ballistic missile test,
or any other provocation, and many have hoped that this signalled an easing of tensions
on the peninsula.
It's currently unclear what response Pyongyang will give to Monday's incident.
Kwon Jang-ho, Arirang News.
N. Korean soldier walks across DMZ to defect 북한군 10대병사 비무장지대 통해 귀순 North Korean soldier rescued by navy to be repatriated North Korea Soldier: “We Will Win” ~ United States VS North Korea WW3 ⚠️ US Citizen and North Korean soldier debate nuclear attacks and more North Korean soldier flees by crossing dangerous DMZ My life in North Korea vs South Korea N. Korean soldier crosses border to defect to South South Korea - Remains of US soldier handed over North Korean Soldier Kills Commanders, Defects South Viktor Belenko - The pilot who stole Soviet's Mig-25 fighter jet