‘Inhumane act’: South Korea slams North Korea for demolishing family reunion centre

North Korea is tearing down a key venue that when hosted reunions for households separated by the Korean Warfare, South Korea confirmed on Thursday, calling the transfer “inhumane.”
The Mount Kumgang Reunion Centre, which facilitated emotional conferences between long-separated family members, is being demolished by Pyongyang, Seoul’s unification ministry stated.
‘Trampling on needs of separated households’
“The demolition of the Mount Kumgang Reunion Middle is an inhumane act that tramples on the earnest needs of separated households,” a spokesperson for the ministry said.
South Korea “sternly urges a right away halt to such actions” and “expresses robust remorse,” the official added.
“North Korea’s unilateral demolition can’t be justified beneath any pretext, and the North Korean authorities should bear full accountability for this example.”
Many years of separation
Since 1988, greater than 133,600 South Koreans have registered as “separated households,” which means they’ve family members within the North. Nevertheless, as of 2025, solely round 36,000 are nonetheless alive, based on official figures.
For years, some households had been allowed to fulfill on the Mount Kumgang resort in deliberate reunions, however these conferences typically relied on political relations between the 2 Koreas. The final reunion was in 2018.
The reunions had been a uncommon probability for growing older relations to fulfill their family members after a long time aside, however North Korea has regularly used them as a bargaining instrument in negotiations with Seoul.
Seoul has condemned Pyongyang’s choice, viewing it as one more setback in inter-Korean relations.