The scope of North Korea’s nationwide prison overhaul appears to be growing, according to NK Pro analysis of satellite imagery, amid signs of rising crime and attempts to reform the system.

NK Pro has identified three additional prisons where dismantlement and reconstruction have taken place in recent months, bringing the total to at least eight prisons or “reeducation” facilities subject to major changes in the last 18 months. 

This includes one brand new prison, the first such construction project to be identified in the country in decades.

The overhaul, which NK Pro tracked with the help of the Access DPRK map, may be indicative of leader Kim Jong Un’s attempts to crack down on what he believes are ideological and behavioral problems threatening his plans and power.

Improvements to such facilities also set the stage for Kim to potentially formalize or open up about the country’s notorious correctional system — like he has on the economy as of late — to improve its reputation both domestically and abroad.

PYONGYANG

One of the four prisons newly identified as part of the apparent nationwide project is located in Hyongsan-ri of northern Pyongyang’s Hyongjesan District. 

North Korean defectors have described a prison meant for high-ranking officials and even foreigners called the “Hyongsan Management Division” (형산관리과) in this area. 

While this prison is the only facility in the vicinity surrounded by walls and guard towers, the name and identity of it has not been confirmed. Defector Kim Ju Won, for example, said the elite prison by this name lacked a perimeter wall and instead was protected by barbed wire fencing.

The name “Hyongsan Kyohwaso” (형산리교화소) has also appeared in defector testimony, where kyohwaso refers to a type of “reeducation” prison housing inmates found guilty of economic and violent crimes and even some crimes that could be considered political like attempting to escape the country. Such prisons have reportedly featured forced labor and living conditions so bad that inmate deaths were a normal occurrence.

Planet Labs satellite imagery shows the main building in one half of the partitioned 3.6-acre (1.5-hectare) walled complex was dismantled at the end of 2023, before rapid construction from March to April 2024 of a two-winged, 17,00 square-foot (1,600 square-meter) mutli-story building in its place, possibly for inmates. Its southern perimeter wall was also taken down and rebuilt to expand the prison grounds.

Construction may have finished last year, effectively increasing the capacity and possibly improving living conditions as well.

SONGGAN COUNTY

More recently, dismantlement has commenced on a larger prison located near a new weapons factory in Songgan County of Jagang Province.

Buildings began to disappear inside the 14-acre (5.6-hectare) walled complex in the Changphyong-mal area in late Jan. 2025, according to Planet Labs imagery, while it appears that workers have been preparing the grounds across the prison throughout April for future construction.

The facility is located in a region where the munitions industry dominates the economy, meaning inmate labor may have been or will be exploited to contribute to North Korea’s weapons production. 

Defector testimony has called it the “Songgan Kyohwaso” or “Kyohwaso No. 6,” and claims have emerged that it only houses workers from weapons factories.

It did not appear to be severely damaged during major floods that destroyed an entire nearby village last summer, though it cannot be ruled out that recent construction efforts are related to flood damage.

KANGDONG

Dismantlement has also taken place at another prison near the capital — Kyohwaso No. 4 located in the Salmaji (살마지) area of the eastern suburb Kangdong County — though it is not yet clear if large-scale construction will take place.

Planet Labs imagery shows partial building dismantlement in Nov. 2024 as well as between Feb. and April 2025, though other buildings remain intact and new construction has not started.

Construction began on a new power plant less than a mile to the south in the late 2010s, but work stalled and the project’s aging remnants were finally removed last summer. Ongoing work to clear this area has coincided with the new activity inside the prison, though the link between the two is unclear.

Inmate labor was likely exploited to work the Hukryong Coal Mine located directly behind the prison walls. The Samdung Chemical Factory under the munitions industry is also located nearby to the east.

UPDATE ON PREVIOUSLY IDENTIFIED PRISONS

NK Pro previously released exclusive reports on major prison upgrades starting in 2023 in Sinuiju, Chonnae, Sariwon and Hamhung and a brand new prison in Hwangju.

As of late April 2025, Planet Labs imagery suggests work may have been completed and facilities opened in Chonnae and Sariwon, while dismantlement appears ongoing in half of the Sinuiju facility while the final touches are made on the other half.

New construction has also begun at the Hamhung prison over the last month, while paving of the grounds inside the new prison in Hwangju took place in recent weeks.

Edited by Bryan Betts