A group of South Korean religious leaders, civic group officials and lawmakers heading to North Korea for a joint new year event with their North Korean counterparts arrive at the Donghae Highway Transit Office in Goseong, Gangwon Province, Tuesday. Yonhap

A group of religious leaders, civic group officials and lawmakers headed to North Korea on Tuesday to hold a joint new year event with their North Korean counterparts.

The delegation, consisting of about 250 South Koreans, plans to cross the eastern inter-Korean border to Mount Geumgang on the North's east coast for a two-day stay there. They included leaders of South Korea's major religions, labor unions and civic groups representing women, youth and farming communities. About 10 journalists were also among them.

During the two-day stay, they plan to hold a joint new year event and meetings with their North Korean counterparts. On the second day, they plan to watch the sunrise together and visit a temple.

They are expected to propose various cooperative projects, such as temple stays, symposiums for educators and exchanges among students in sports and the arts.

This marks the first joint civilian cross-border event this year.

Their trip to North Korea came about three months after officials of the Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation visited Mount Geumgang in November for joint events to call for faithful implementation of inter-Korean summit agreements last year. (Yonhap)