PYONGYANG, April 12 -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) demanded Tuesday that South Koreareturn 13 DPRK nationals who Seoul claimed were defectors to the South and apologize for abducting them.

A spokesman for the central committee of the DPRK Red Cross Society said that the National Intelligence Service of South Korea lured and abducted the 13 individuals who worked at a state-run restaurant in China, calling this "a hideous crime" against the DPRK's dignity and its social system.

The spokesman asked South Korean authorities to apologize for the group kidnapping and send them back to the DPRK immediately.

The South will be accountable for serious consequences if it fails to do so, he added.

Seoul's unification ministry said Friday that the group defected to South Korea last week. Local media said it marked the first time that a group of DPRK citizens working at the same overseas restaurant defected to South Korea.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang confirmed Monday that 13 DPRK nationals entered and left China legally with valid passports last week. He made the remarks at a briefing when asked to comment on a report that 13 DPRK nationals had gone to the Republic of Korea from a restaurant in an unspecified third country, possibly China.

"As for illegal entry by DPRK citizens, China will always properly handle the issue in line with international and domestic law as well as humanitarian principles. That's our established policy," Lu added.