SEOUL, Aug. 26 (Yonhap) -- The body of a North Korean soldier floated down a river into South Korea after recent flooding, a military official here said Sunday.

   The body was found on Aug. 23 in the Hantan River, about 100 kilometers northeast of Seoul, and was handed over to the United Nations Command (UNC) for transfer to the North, the official said, requesting anonymity.

   "The body is thought to have floated here due to recent heavy rains and flooding," the officer said.

   Heavy downpours swept through large parts of the communist country between late June and the end of July, resulting in 169 deaths and 400 people missing, according to the North's state media.

   "The UNC will notify the North of such facts and take the necessary steps to repatriate the body to the North, which could take longer than 10 days if past cases are any guide," the official said, without elaborating on a detailed schedule or information on the deceased.

   The UNC, responsible for monitoring an armistice agreement that ended the 1950-53 Korean War, is led by the top U.S. commander in South Korea. The U.S. has some 28,500 troops stationed in South Korea, a legacy of the Korean War.

   In 2010, the UNC repatriated the bodies of two North Korean soldiers apparently killed in flooding, which floated down the Imjin river, about 60 kilometers northeast of Seoul, into South Korea.

   graceoh@yna.co.kr
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