North Korea has detained the head pastor of one of Canada’s largest congregations, who went missing during a regular humanitarian mission last month, a church spokeswoman said yesterday.

Reverend Hyeon Soo Lim, 60, from the 3,000-member Light Korean Presbyterian Church in Toronto, was last heard from on January 31, church spokeswoman Lisa Pak said.

“The Lim family has received notice from Canadian officials that the government of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea has confirmed that Mr Hyeon Soo Lim is being held in North Korea,” Pak said.

Canada’s foreign ministry said yesterday it is aware of a Canadian citizen being detained in North Korea. A spokeswoman declined to give details, citing privacy reasons. Canada has a longstanding advisory against travel to the Asian state, partly because it has limited ability to provide consular assistance there.

Pak said she did not want to speculate on why North Korea had detained Lim. Both North Korea and China have clamped down on Christian groups over the past year, and several American Christians have been detained by North Korea.

Toronto City councillor Raymond Cho, a friend of the pastor who also emigrated to Canada from South Korea decades ago, said he was worried about Lim’s health in detention.

“Rev Lim has a very serious health problem, very high blood pressure, he’s on a prescription, and his family is anxious to send medicine,” Cho said. “His wife is quite concerned because it’s a real health problem. He’s been there more than a month.”

Cho said he will help organise a petition to pressure Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to work hard for Lim’s release.

Last month, China said it had formally detained a Canadian man, Kevin Garratt, on suspicion of stealing state secrets.