hankyoreh

Two people trek along the path to the base camp of Mount Annapurna in Nepal. (Koo Bon-kwon/The Hankyoreh)

South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it has confirmed the identity of a Korean woman in her 50s surnamed Kim who died while trekking in the Himalayas in Nepal.

“The Korean Embassy in Nepal was notified that the body of a woman, presumed to be Korean, had been found on Thorong La Pass, which is part of the Annapurna Circuit, on Jan. 16. After making contact with the Nepalese police, we confirmed the woman’s Korean nationality and the circumstances of her death,” an official from the ministry said on Tuesday.

Members of the Korean community in Nepal had earlier said that a woman in her 50s, presumed to be a Korean, had been found by a local guide on Thorong La Pass, one of the trekking courses on Mount Annapurna, on Sunday afternoon.

This trekking course is located at an elevation of 5,000 meters above sea level on what is regarded as the world’s highest mountain pass.

The local police reportedly identified Kim using documents in her possession.

Kim had apparently arrived in Nepal on Dec. 1, 2022, and had been planning to return home on Jan. 25.

“After learning the identity of the Korean citizen, our embassy in Nepal has contacted her bereaved family in Korea and is providing the necessary consular assistance,” the Foreign Ministry official said.

By Shin Hyeong-cheol, staff reporter

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