North Koreans storm Spanish embassy

The North Koreans rush past guards

More than 20 North Koreans have forced their way into the Spanish embassy in the Chinese capital, Beijing.

The group pushed past guards outside the embassy at about 10 am local time (0200 GMT) a witness was quoted as saying.

Within minutes, dozens of armed Chinese guards converged on the compound.

Statements distributed by the group, who are said to be seeking refugee status, said they wanted to go to South Korea.

"We are now at the point of such desperation and live in such fear of persecution within North Korea that we have come to the decision to risk our lives for freedom rather than passively await our doom," the group statement said, according to the Associated Press news agency.

Correspondents say the front gate of the Spanish Embassy front gate is usually kept wide open, in contrast to more heavily guarded embassies.