N. Korea demands repatriation of 9 defectors who sailed into S. Korea last week

SEOUL (Yonhap) - North Korea on Thursday demanded that a group of nine North Korean defectors, who crossed the tense western sea border into South Korea aboard an engineless boat last Saturday, be returned to the North, according to government officials in Seoul.
"North Korea's Red Cross asked for an immediate repatriation of the nine North Korean defectors, citing media reports that they were under investigation by the South's authority," said an official at the Unification Ministry.
North Korea also demanded the return of the defectors' ship, the official said.
The nine North Koreans -- three adult men, two adult women and four children -- are family members of two brothers, according to another official.