S. Korea to review request by elderly ex-N. Korean soldier to return to North

▲ Ahn Hak-sop (C), a former North Korean soldier who has yet to renounce Pyongyang, holds a North Korean flag during his attempt to cross the Unification Bridge in the border city of Paju, northwest of Seoul, on Aug. 20, 2025. (Yonhap)

ex-NK prisoner-ideology

S. Korea to review request by elderly ex-N. Korean soldier to return to North

By Chae Yun-hwan

SEOUL, Aug. 22 (Yonhap) -- The unification ministry plans to review a request by an elderly former North Korean soldier, who had been jailed for decades in South Korea, to be returned to the North, according to a civic group representing the former prisoner Friday.

The 95-year-old former prisoner, Ahn Hak-sop, is one of six elderly former North Korean soldiers and spies who have yet to renounce their communist ideology, known as "unconverted long-term prisoners."

This week, Ahn attempted to cross a border bridge to return to the North, but was stopped by troops guarding the area that restricts civilian access.

Last month, the civic group asked the unification ministry, which is in charge of inter-Korean relations, to reply about Ahn's request.

A ministry official told the group in a written response, "The government will review this issue ... (We) are regretful over Ahn Hak-sop's pain caused by the division and express deep sympathy."

The official noted that the government recognized not much time is left for elderly people like Ahn, who still seek repatriation to North Korea.

Ahn was arrested in South Korea in April 1953 during the Korean War when he served in the North Korean military.

He was found guilty of aiding North Korea and served 42 years in prison before his release in 1995.

In September 2000, the South Korean government under then President Kim Dae-jung repatriated 63 unconverted long-term prisoners to North Korea, after an inter-Korean summit in June that year. Seoul has yet to repatriate more of such prisoners.

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