Seoul, June 16 (IANS): A North Korean teenaged soldier has defected to South Korea to escape physical violence, Seoul's defence ministry said on Tuesday.

The soldier, 19, "decided to escape from the army because of the regular beatings that he received", a spokesperson from the ministry told Efe news agency after the first round of interrogations.

The North Korean youth appeared early Monday at a border post of the South Korean army in Hwacheon, in the Demilitarized Zone where the 38th Parallel divides the two Koreas.

The soldier walked through forest land, for more than a week, to cross the world's most fortified border after leaving his post on June 7, according to the spokesperson.

He added that the soldier was in good health and was being questioned further on his defection.

Meanwhile, the South Korean armed forces are being criticised for failing to nab the soldier till he surrendered at the border post.

An official from the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff told Yonhap news agency that "it was foggy and the border area is thick in the woods, which effectively obstructed our view".

Defection from North Korea through the Demilitarized Zone is very rare.

The last instance of defection took place in October 2012.

In recent years, between 1,000 and 3,000 North Koreans, including some soldiers, have taken refuge in South Korea.