North Korea is silent as rescued fishermen sent back in a wooden boat from South Korea

Six North Korean fishermen made it back home safely after South Korea sent them across the water border. A government official confirmed their wooden boat reached a North Korean port on the east coast. The fishermen had been rescued by South Korean authorities but told officials they wanted to return to their homeland. A large North Korean ship helped tow their small wooden boat to shore. The repatriation happened just one day earlier when the men crossed back over the Northern Limit Line in the East Sea.

Four of the fishermen had drifted into southern waters back in May and were pulled to safety. The other two fishermen were rescued during a similar incident in March when they ended up in the Yellow Sea. All six men made it clear they wanted to go back to North Korea rather than stay in the South. South Korean officials used the same wooden boat the fishermen had been rescued in to send them home. The unification ministry confirmed the boat arrived safely but would not say which specific port they used.

North Korea has stayed completely silent about getting their fishermen back. Officials from the South Korean unification ministry reported that Pyongyang showed no response to the repatriation by Thursday morning. The fishermen completed their journey home after spending months in South Korean custody following their rescue at sea.