63 N. Korean defectors arrive in S. Korea in 1st half, down 35 pct on-year

SEOUL, Aug. 6 (Yonhap) -- A total of 63 North Korean defectors entered South Korea for resettlement in the first half of the year, down nearly 35 percent from a year earlier, the unification ministry said Thursday.

The tally -- 59 women and four men -- brought the cumulative number of North Korean defectors in the South to 34,600, compared with 96 during the same period last year, according to the ministry.

An official at the ministry attributed the sharp drop to tightened controls along the North Korea-China border and restricted movement through third countries.

Defections had significantly slowed during the COVID-19 pandemic amid Pyongyang's strict border controls, before rebounding to 196, 236 and 224 in 2023, 2024 and 2025, respectively.

Paper slips with North Korean defectors' messages to their hometowns are attached on a map of North Korea during a ceremony at the KINTEX convention center in Goyang, northwest of Seoul, on July 14, 2026, to mark the third anniversary of the Day for North Korean defectors. (Yonhap)