"Our side received a South Korean national surnamed Seo, born in 1984, through Panmunjom from the North at 11:00 am (0200 GMT)" on Tuesday, the ministry said in a statement, referring to the truce village in the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two countries.

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A view of a rally celebrating North Korea's progress in their nuclear and missile programme in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang. (Reuters)

Pyongyang today released a South Korean detainee "arrested for entering the North illegally" last month, Seoul's unification ministry said, as ties improve between the two countries following a summit between their leaders in April.

"Our side received a South Korean national surnamed Seo, born in 1984, through Panmunjom from the North at 11:00 am (0200 GMT)" on Tuesday, the ministry said in a statement, referring to the truce village in the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two countries.

The release followed a message from Pyongyang on Monday informing Seoul that the North Korean authorities had arrested the South Korean for "entering the North illegally on July 22", the statement added.

First Published on Aug 7, 2018 01:13 pm

North Korea frees South Korean detainee arrested in July: Seoul

"Our side received a South Korean national surnamed Seo, born in 1984, through Panmunjom from the North at 11:00 am (0200 GMT)" on Tuesday, the ministry said in a statement, referring to the truce village in the Demilitarized Zone dividing the two countries.