South Korea finds remains of soldier who died in DMZ 65 years ago

SEOUL, Oct. 25 (UPI) -- South Korean officials have found the remains of a soldier in the Demilitarized Zone for the first time in 65 years.

The Defense Ministry said Thursday it found an identification tag for South Korean Army sergeant Pak Je Kwon, as well as unidentified thigh and rib bones and skulls in the same area.

The ministry said Pak joined the Army at the age of 21 on March 21, 1952, and died in a fierce battle a year later on July 10, 1953, at Arrowhead Ridge, a site of fierce battles during the Korean War.

Pak, part of the second division of the South Korean Army, fought in two battles between South Korean and U.S. troops against North Korean and Chinese forces from June to July 1953.

"Pak died a day before the final battle ended," the ministry said.

Some of the most brutal battles took place at Arrowhead Ridge, in what's now the DMZ. South Korean Army and U.S. and French troops fought against the Chinese, who participated in the Korean War on the North Korean side from 1951 to 1953.

The ministry predicted hundreds of South Korean, American and French soldiers were buried in the area, along with Chinese and North Korean soldiers.

The discovery was made while the North and South were clearing mines on an old battleground ahead of a joint excavation for remains -- a follow-up measure of the military agreement signed between leaders last month in Pyongyang.

The two Koreas agreed to conduct a joint excavation project from April to October next year.

The ministry said the team has found 14 landmines, 187 explosives, M1 Garands and a few swords so far.