Seven North Koreans who strayed across the two Koreas' disputed Yellow Sea border in a small boat want to return to North Korea, security officials said Tuesday in Seoul, dpa reported.
The seven were spotted by South Korean Coast Guard officers Monday after accidentally drifting across the maritime frontier off the west coast, said a spokesman for the National Intelligence Service, South Korea's main spy agency.
"All of them expressed their wish to return to the North," said the official, who requested anonymity.
As a result, the North Koreans were expected to be sent back to their home country, South Korea's Yonhap News agency reported.
The incident came after North Korea on Monday declared "a peacetime naval firing zone" at the disputed sea border and warned South Korean warships to steer clear of the area.
7 North Koreans who drifted into South's waters want to return home
