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South Korea Stops 95-Year-Old Ex–North Korean Soldier at Border as Repatriation Pleas Reviewed

Officials say any transfer requires coordination with Pyongyang, which has cut most official contact since 2023.

Ahn Hak-sop was denied permission to try and cross into North Korea, where he says he wants to be buried with his comrades
Ahn Hak-sop
Ahn Hak-sop
This file photo shows Ahn Hak-sop, 95, a former North Korean spy agent, ahead of a press conference in Seoul on Aug. 8, 2025, calling on the government to repatriate him to North Korea. (Yonhap)

Overview

  • Six elderly former North Korean soldiers and spies filed formal repatriation requests with South Korea’s Unification Ministry, which says it is reviewing the issue with no decision yet.
  • Ahn Hak-sop, 95, tried to approach the Unification Bridge toward North Korea, was halted by troops and taken to a hospital, and is now recovering at home, an activist said.
  • The ministry says repatriation would require time for procedures and consultations with the North and other authorities under strict DMZ access rules and national security laws.
  • North Korea has not publicly committed to accepting the men, and inter-Korean communication channels remain largely severed.
  • The appeal unfolds under President Lee Jae-myung’s outreach to the North, recalling the lone precedent of 63 unconverted prisoners repatriated in 2000 with no similar transfers since.