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N Korea at crossroads

Defectors in South Korea fret over families in North amid tensions

Anti-Pyongyang leaflets draw criticism from proponents of North-South ties

Kim Tae-san, leader of the One Korea Work Together, says North Korean authorities have issued orders to follow and ostracize defectors' families as a result of the leafleting from the South.

SEOUL -- Tensions have soared between North and South Korea recently, as Pyongyang responds with threats over propaganda leaflets floated northward over the border by defectors. That has made many of the 35,000 or so North Koreans who have sought refuge in the South nervous.

"We are feeling heartbroken, wondering what will happen to our families and relatives in North Korea," said Kim Tae-san, who heads a conservative group of defectors and others called the One Korea Work Together.

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