S Korea repatriates 3 North Korean sailors

Seoul: South Korea repatriated three North Korean sailors and the body of a deceased mariner retrieved from the East Sea by authorities earlier this week, said the Unification Ministry on Saturday.

The North Korean sailors were found by a local coast guard on Thursday after their boat went off-course in the South Korean waters of East Sea. While the three sailors were rescued, the coast guard also retrieved the body of the fourth seaman, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Following the rescue operations, South Korea, in a letter, informed North Korea via the Korean Red Cross about the repatriation, after which Pyongyang accepted it.

More details about the boat and the sailors were not immediately known.

[source_without_link]ANI[/source_without_link]