- South Korea’s military said it fired warning shots to repel the North Korean soldiers.
- North Korean soldiers reportedly crossed into the demilitarized zone.
Several North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded inside the Demilitarized Zone when South Korea fired warning shots early Tuesday morning.
The South Korean military said it fired to repel North Korean soldiers who temporarily crossed its rivals’ land border for the second time this month.
An estimated 20 to 30 North Korean soldiers, while carrying out unspecified construction work on the northern side of the border, reportedly crossed the military demarcation line dividing the countries at around 8.30 am local time.
North Korean soldiers then withdrew after the South broadcast warnings and fired, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, adding that they did not see any suspicious activity afterwards.
While fleeing, an unknown number of North Korean soldiers were injured by a landmine explosion, Yonhap news agency reports. according to AFP.
“The North Korean army suffers multiple casualties due to a mine explosion during work,” the report states, without giving further details.
North Korean soldiers were reportedly “killed or wounded” by landmine explosions inside the Demilitarized Zone on Tuesday morning.
Previously, the South fired warning shots on June 11 after another group of North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the CDM.
But South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday’s incident occurred in a different area along the central region of the front line.
They said they do not believe North Korean soldiers invaded the border intentionally and that the North did not return fire.
But they also said the North has been increasing construction activity in frontline border areas, such as installing suspected anti-tank barriers, reinforcing roads and laying land mines.
South Korean officials noted They recently observed several explosions suspected to have been caused by mines in areas where North Korean soldiers were deployed for construction work, but that activities continued despite an unspecified number of injuries or deaths.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff now anticipate that North Korea will continue to expand its border construction activities, which it said could be aimed at making it more difficult for North Korean civilians or soldiers to escape to the South as Pyongyang’s leadership tries to strengthen its control over its people.
The border intrusions come as tensions rise between the war-divided rivals, who in recent weeks have engaged in Cold War-style psychological warfare and made clear they are no longer bound by their historic military agreement. 2018 to reduce tensions.
The communist country announced in November that it would abandon the terms of the 2018 agreement with Seoul and move more troops and equipment to the border, after South Korea suspended part of the agreement in response to Pyongyang’s successful launch of its first spy satellite. military.
In recent weeks, Pyongyang has sent more than 1,200 garbage balloons across its southern border in retaliation for South Korean activists sending humanitarian aid balloons. Stars and Stripes Reports.
Meanwhile, Tuesday’s incident comes just hours before Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit the communist country.