Seoul calls repatriation of North Korean fishermen ‘crime against humanity’ | NK News
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September 20, 2026Sep 20, 2026

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Seoul calls repatriation of North Korean fishermen ‘crime against humanity’

Presidential office vows to investigate after photos show one man resisting handover, as 2019 case erupts into scandal

South Korea’s presidential office condemned the previous government’s decision to repatriate two North Korean fishermen as a “crime against humanity” on Wednesday, a day after newly released photos showed at least one of the men physically resisting their 2019 handover to DPRK authorities.

The Yoon Suk-yeol administration vowed to further investigate the three-year-old case in light of the “shocking” photos, as questions about how and why the government chose to send the fishermen back rapidly snowball into a major political scandal.

Later in the day, prosecutors raidedthe National Intelligence Service as part of a probe into the 2019 forced