Escape from North Korea

Step into one of the most volatile places on earth: the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Despite its name, the DMZ is the most militarised border in the world, a tense strip of land dividing North and South Korea since the 1953 armistice. Technically still at war, the two nations face each other across a boundary where even the smallest incident can ignite global attention.

In Panmunjom’s Joint Security Area, North and South Korean soldiers stand just metres apart. It was here, on 13 November 2017, that the world witnessed a dramatic escape as North Korean soldier Oh Chong-song fled across the border under a barrage of gunfire before collapsing on the southern side and being airlifted to safety. Oh’s desperate dash is just one of thousands. Since the end of the Korean War, countless North Koreans have risked everything for a chance at freedom. 

Join Gary Kent at the DMZ as he uncovers the stories behind this high-stakes border, the human cost of division, and the universal longing for freedom shared by people in every place and every time.