The government plans to send seven North Korean fishermen back to the North on Wednesday.

Earlier on Monday, South Korean fishing boats spotted in South Korean territorial waters past the Northern Limit Line a small barge carrying the seven North Koreans.

The Unification Ministry said it notified Pyongyang on Tuesday that it would hand over the fishermen on humanitarian grounds, citing that all seven expressed wishes to return to their homeland during investigations by the South Korean government.

The North, in response, said it would accept the seven men.

Government authorities found during investigations that the North Korean ship had departed from Hwanghae Province and drifted into South Korean waters after the ship’s engine broke down, leaving the crew stranded for three days.