Four people claiming to be North Korean asylum-seekers are reportedly demanding safe passage to South Korea after dashing into a German government-run school in Beijing.

Activists aiding North Korean escapees in China said that three women and one man succeeded in entering the German school by scaling its wall at around 6:00 p.m., Korean time, Wednesday. One other suspected female asylum-seeker reportedly failed to enter the school and was arrested by the Chinese police.

The school is about a five-minute drive from the South Korean Embassy.

Among the four purported asylum-seekers is a woman who, according to a source familiar with North Korean defectors, is a close relative of a high-ranking North Korean official.

The group's entry into the school Wednesday is apparently the fourth time North Korean defectors have successfully entered the German school in the Chinese capital. In September 2002, 15 escapees entered the school and were allowed to go to South Korea via a third country, while another eight defectors took shelter there in February this year. Also on June 1st, six people claiming to be North Koreans gained access to the school grounds.

The South Korean Embassy in Beijing said it will immediately work to gain custody of the four North Koreans as soon as their entry into the German school is confirmed.