US soldier likely held after N Korea crossing, officials say

A US soldier crossed the inter-Korean border into North Korea and was believed to be in North Korea custody, a US official said, creating a fresh crisis for Washington in its dealings with the nuclear-armed state.

The United Nations Command that oversees the demilitarised zone area at the border earlier on Tuesday identified the individual as a US national who had crossed into North Korea without authorisation while on a tour. It said the person was likely in custody but offered no other details.

South Korea's Dong-a Ilbo daily, citing South Korea's army, identified the person as Travis King, a US army soldier with the rank of private second class. The newspaper later deleted the name.

Two US officials told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity, that the soldier had been due to face disciplinary action by the US military.

It was not clear how he had arranged to be on the tour. A third US official said the soldier had crossed into North Korea "willfully and without authorisation."

The man was with a group of visitors, including civilians, to the Panmunjom truce village when he suddenly bolted over the brick line marking the border, Donga and the Chosun Ilbo daily newspapers reported, citing South Korean army sources.

The White House, the US State Department and the Pentagon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The crossing comes at a sensitive time amid high tensions on the Korean peninsula, with the arrival of a US nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine in South Korea for a rare visit in a warning to North Korea over its own military activities.

North Korea has been testing increasingly powerful missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, including a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile launched last week.