South Korean crosses DMZ in rare defection to North Korea

Key Facts

South Korean troops searched for the person in the DMZ but were unable to find them A South Korean citizen has crossed the heavily fortified border into North Korea in an apparent defection, South Korea's military says.
Military chiefs in Seoul said they did not know if the person was still alive, but had sent a message to the North asking for them to be protected.
North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un had earlier declared a national emergency and sealed off a town after a North Korean defector who Mr Kim said had Covid symptoms crossed into the North from the South.
The border between North and South Korea is one of the most heavily fortified areas in the world.