Korean War veterans wish for peace on divided peninsula

Hostilities ended on July 27, 1953, with a ceasefire never ratified by a peace treaty

Korean War veteran Choi Chun-hwan, 92. Hostilities ended on July 27, 1953, with a ceasefire that has never been replaced by a peace treaty, meaning the two Koreas remain technically at war. All photos: AFP

Jang Du-byung, 92. South Korea was invaded by the communist North in 1950, as Pyongyang tried to forcefully reunify a peninsula divided by Moscow and Washington after the Second World War

Lee Hong-gyun, 91. UN experts have said the devastation wrought on the peninsula during its war has 'largely been overlooked'

Ryu Jae-sik, 91, has had a bullet fired by a Chinese soldier lodged in his chest for 70 years, a constant reminder of the conflict that never ended

Lee Byung-yong, 92. North Korea fired its most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile yet this month, with leader Kim Jong-un ordering his military to intensify drills to prepare for a 'real war'

Lee Choon-ok, 88, said: 'War can break out at any time in a ceasefire. Those North Koreans are always after South Korea'

Kim Young-ho, 92, fought in Yanggu, the scene of major battles. 'My comrades were shot and died,' he said. 'Maybe it's because I'm approaching death myself that I am reminded of them a lot'

Lee Sang-gi, 91. The South is now the world's 10th-largest economy and a global cultural powerhouse

Lee Young-woo, 91. The Korean peninsula remains physically split by the Demilitarized Zone

Shin Jong-kyun, 91, said: 'Everyone who enlisted with me during the Korean War died, so I feel sorry about being alive'

Kim Tae-yoon, 92. The trajectories of the two Koreas have diverged massively, especially in recent years

In this photo taken on June 25, 2023, Korean War veteran Jo Joong-hee, born in 1936, poses during an interview with AFP in Seoul. Korean War hostilities concluded on July 27, 1953, with a ceasefire that has never been replaced by a peace treaty, meaning the two Koreas remain technically at war. (Photo by ANTHONY WALLACE / AFP) / TO GO WITH: SKorea-NKorea-war-anniversary

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