Five prisoners of war seeking compensation for physical and psychological damages after the Korean War filed a joint lawsuit against North Korea and leader Kim Jong Un in Seoul Central District Court on Thursday.

The POWs are each suing for 21 million won ($14,187) after alleging they were forcibly sent to work in North Korean coal mines and subjected to severe mistreatment, Son Myeong-hwa, the daughter of a deceased POW and head of the Korean POW Families Association, told NK News on Wednesday.

The five plaintiffs were each imprisoned for over 45 years and defected to South Korea before Kim