South Korea denounced the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s unilateral delay of the reunion of families separated by the Korean War (1950-53), saying it was an act against humanity.

"It is deeply regrettable that North Korea (DPRK) unilaterally delays the family reunion, which has been prepared as a sheer humanitarian event to cure the biggest pain of our people, just four days before the event," Kim Eyi Do, Seoul's Unification Ministry spokesman, told an emergency press briefing.

Seoul and Pyongyang originally planned to hold the reunion event for six days from Sept. 25 in DPRK's scenic resort of Mount Kumgang, but the DPRK said earlier that it will postpone the event "until normal atmosphere is created" for the two Koreas to be able to hold dialogue and negotiations.

The highly symbolic event would have been the first reunion in three years for families separated for decades by the Korean War. The reunion program had been suspended after the DPRK's shelling of a South Korean border island in November 2010.

Kim said that Pyongyang's unilateral postponement deserved to be criticized as "an act against humanity," noting that it would never be justified by any means for the DPRK to put off the reunion for political reasons.

The spokesman said that one of South Korean participants to the reunion event died of old age two days ago and three others gave up joining the event due to health reasons. He stressed that the family reunion has been the most pressing issue to be resolved.