South Korea has notified North Korea of its intent to hand over a body suspected of being a North Korean found along the coast of Seokmo Island in Incheon's Ganghwa County.

Unification ministry spokesperson Koo Byoung-sam said on Thursday that the body found on September 10 is currently at a nearby hospital.

Koo said Seoul has reached out to Pyongyang through the inter-Korean communication channel to request a prompt response to its notice of humanitarian intent to repatriate the body and accompanying articles at the truce village of Panmunjeom at 3 p.m. Tuesday.

The remains are of a man about 170 centimeters tall who was in possession of a badge and a memo that suggest he was a North Korean citizen.

In June, Pyongyang did not respond to a similar notification from Seoul about the body of a man in his 20s or 30s found in waters near Ganghwa Island.

In accordance with related guidelines, any deceased North Korean citizen that is not taken back is cremated by the south as an unclaimed body.

[Photo : YONHAP News]