A South Korean court has ruled against two North Korean defectors who sued Seoul’s spy agency for alleged illegal detainment and torture, in a case that experts say underscores the need to protect defectors’ human rights when they first arrive in the South.

Court records obtained by NK News show that the Seoul High Court rejected the defectors’ claim that the National Intelligence Service (NIS) unlawfully detained them and subjected them to harsh interrogation methods during mandatory resettlement procedures.