North, South Korean troops exchange border fire

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SEOUL: North and South Korean troops briefly exchanged fire yesterday in the latest in a series of minor border skirmishes that have raised military tensions on the divided peninsula.

The South’s defence ministry said the exchange inside the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) that separates the two rivals lasted only 10 minutes. There were no reported casualties. The DMZ is probably the world’s most heavily militarised border, bristling with watchtowers and landmines.

Four kilometres wide, it straddles the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) which marks the actual frontier. A defence ministry official said a South Korean border patrol had spotted North Korean troops approaching close to the MDL.

“Verbal warnings were issued by loudspeaker and then warning shots were fired. The North Koreans then opened fire on our troops, who returned fire,” the official said.

According to an official with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, South Korean troops had issued verbal warnings or fired warning shots on two other occasions along the MDL in the past 24 hours. There have been a series of border exchanges in recent weeks that have raised temperatures along the perennially volatile border.

On Oct 10 the two sides traded heavy machine-gun fire after the North’s military tried to shoot down some leaflet-laden balloons launched by South Korean anti-Pyongyang activists. — AFP