Kim Shin-jo, the last surviving member of a North Korean hit squad, known for his 1968 assassination attempt against South Korea's leader, died at 82. Transforming from a soldier into a pastor, his life reflects the complex history of Korea.
From Assassin to Pastor: The Life of Kim Shin-jo, North Korean Defector
From Assassin to Pastor: The Life of Kim Shin-jo, North Korean Defector
Kim Shin-jo, the lone captured commando from the infamous 1968 assassination attempt on South Korea's dictator Park Chung-hee, passes away aged 82.
Kim Shin-jo, the only captured member of a North Korean commando team that attempted to assassinate South Korea's military dictator Park Chung-hee in 1968, has passed away at the age of 82. His death, attributed to old age, was confirmed by Sungrak Church in Seoul on Thursday.
In January 1968, Kim and a squad of 31 commandos stealthily infiltrated the heavily fortified border between North and South Korea. Their mission was to assassinate Park Chung-hee and his government, a plot that ultimately culminated in a daring advance into the heart of Seoul. They reached within yards of the presidential Blue House but were thwarted by South Korean forces in a violent confrontation.
All but two of the team members were killed in the melee. While one is thought to have safely returned to North Korea, Kim surrendered, marking the beginning of a dramatic overhaul of his life. Shortly after his capture, he declared, “We came to slit President Park Chung-hee’s throat.”
The failed assassination attempt, along with the North Korean capture of the USS Pueblo two days later, significantly escalated Cold War tensions on the Korean Peninsula. In the aftermath, Park’s administration responded by establishing an elite unit of assassins to retaliate against North Korean leader Kim Il-sung, who was the grandfather of current leader Kim Jong-un. This retaliatory unit was eventually dismantled due to mutiny within its ranks in 1971.
Moreover, the South Korean government implemented various security measures, including the introduction of a national ID card system still in use today, to prevent future infiltration by North Korean operatives. Following the events of 1968, Kim dramatically reinvented himself as a fervent anti-Communist lecturer and pastor in South Korea, carving out a new identity steeped in religious devotion.
Kim Shin-jo's life journey from an assassin to a pastor embodies the profound transformations that have occurred in Korean society over the decades, reflecting a tumultuous but ever-evolving history.
