That's what happened to a Kim Young soldier today.

A North Korean soldier has defected in South Korea in the demilitarised area that divides the two countries(DMZ).

The soldier was shot and wounded by his army as he crossed the South Korean side of the village of Panmunjom.

The South Korean Army reports that he has been taken to the hospital.

About 1,000 people from the North flee to the South every year, but very few desert through the DMZ.

This is the fourth time from a North Korean soldier passes through the DMZ, one of the world's most protected borders.

North Korea and South Korea are technically still at war, as the conflict between them ended in 1953 with a ceasefire rather than a formal peace treaty.