Seventy-six North Korean escapees arrived in South Korea between July and September, according to Seoul, bringing the total number of new arrivals this year to 181.

As in the first half, the vast majority of those who resettled in the South in the third quarter were women, with 64 versus just 12 men, unification ministry data shows.

The latest figures mean that the total number of new arrivals in 2024 is likely to exceed last year, when 196 escapees reached the South.

But while North Korean defector numbers have recovered somewhat from the all-time low of 63 in 2021, they