Former North Korean commando tells story of failed assassination of South Korean President

The North Korean commandos prepared carefully for the raid, but made a mistake by sparing the lives of the South Korean loggers who discovered them.

Kim Shin-jo was captured when the North Korean operation failed. Photo: militaryhistorynow

In 1968, 31 North Korean soldiers attempted to break into the official residence of the South Korean president, the Blue House, in Seoul to assassinate then-South Korean president Park Chung-hee. The attempt failed and 29 of the 31 North Korean commandos were killed. The only survivor, Kim Shin-jo, was captured.

According to Tacticalmilsim, 31 elite members were handpicked from Unit 124. They trained for two years and spent 15 days practicing in a full-scale replica of the Blue House. They even wore South Korean military uniforms as disguises and spoke with a Seoul accent.

Their training is tough and often takes place in harsh conditions, such as running at speeds of nearly 13 km/h while carrying 30 kg backpacks on difficult terrain in freezing weather, sometimes resulting in injuries or frostbite.

They were also starved and forced to eat snakes and frogs in the North Korean forests. One of the most difficult challenges was digging graves to hide in. "We slept with skeletons," said Kim Shin-jo. "It gave us courage. No one would think of searching for people in a grave."

On the evening of January 17, 1968, they infiltrated the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two sides of the Korean Peninsula by cutting through a fence guarded by an American division. On January 19, when they reached Simbong Mountain, four South Korean woodcutters discovered them.

The North Korean unit debated whether to kill them. They then decided to give them ideological education and release them, with stern warnings not to report them to the police. However, the Woo brothers immediately alerted the authorities.

South Korean and US forces are on high alert. South Korean military and police are deployed to hunt down intruders.

"They blocked the road, but they couldn't stop us," said Kim Shin-jo. "They thought we were going about 8 km/h, but we were actually going 12 km/h. They blocked the road, but by then we had already passed."

The Blue House - the residence of the South Korean president. Photo: Wiki

On the evening of January 21, 1968, the unit approached the Segeomjeong-Jahamun checkpoint, less than 100 meters from the Blue House, when a police officer approached and questioned them. When the police officer expressed doubt about their answers, the North Korean unit opened fire and threw grenades at the checkpoint.

After a few minutes of gunfire, the unit dispersed and fled into the mountains. South Korea captured one North Korean soldier, but he committed suicide. Nearly 100 South Koreans were killed or injured in the incident, including nearly two dozen civilians on a bus passing the scene of the gunfight, according to Military History Now.

Twenty-nine North Korean soldiers were hunted down and killed over the next nine days. One escaped and returned to North Korea, while only Kim Shin-jo surrendered.

"I put down my weapon," he said. "I have the desire to live, it's human nature."

After a year of interrogation, Kim Shin-jo was acquitted because he never fired a shot during the failed operation. He later became a naturalized South Korean, married, and became a pastor.

According to VNE