SEOUL — South Korea said Friday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has apologized for the shooting death earlier this week of a South Korean fisheries official who drifted into North Korean waters.

“We feel very sorry for greatly disappointing South Koreans and the president by causing an unsavory incident unexpectedly on our side,” National Security Director Suh Hoon quoted Kim as saying in a letter sent to the South Korean government.

South Korean President Moon Jae In on Thursday condemned North Korea for shooting dead the government employee and burning the body at sea. The employee went missing on Monday while on duty in waters near the inter-Korean border.