Reports are emerging that the Chinese government has agreed to release North Korea human rights activist Kim Young Hwan and three other individuals who have been in detention for more than three months after being arrested by the PRC Ministry of State Security in late March.

Yonhap, citing a source inside China, has asserted, “I hear that the Kim group has been released from a detention facility in Dandong, and is currently being questioned by our intelligence in Shenyang.”

However, it is unclear at this stage whether Kim and the other men have been transferred into South Korean custody or not. It is believed that they will ultimately be expelled from China.

UPDATE: Yonhap retracted the story on the morning of July 12th, stating that talks regarding his release are ongoing.