South Korea and the UN Command concluded that North Korean mines south of the Military Demarcation Line caused a 21 September blast that wounded three soldiers. Seoul demanded an apology and began clearing.
South Korea's military said on Monday that a joint investigation with the UN Command found North Korean antipersonnel mines caused a 21 September blast inside the Demilitarized Zone that wounded three South Korean soldiers, two of them seriously.
Deputy Joint Chiefs chief Kwon Dae-won said the soldiers were on normal operations south of the Military Demarcation Line and were injured by a plastic antipersonnel mine the North planted south of the line during what it called border fortification. The blast site was about 10 meters south of the line. Investigators said the mines had been buried for at least 12 months.
Forensic work found traces of TNT and brown synthetic material consistent with North Korean plastic mines, The Diplomat reported. Fragments from the wounded soldiers matched devices previously found near the Imjin River. Pyongyang rejected the findings and refused talks offered after Seoul's earlier assessment.
After the briefing, South Korean forces and the UN Command removed a minefield south of the line. Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul told reporters on Tuesday, according to Yonhap as cited by Turkiye Today, that the clearing was unprecedented and a decisive response.
Seoul has demanded an apology and removal of other mines it says were planted on the southern side in violation of the armistice. No North Korean reply accepting that demand had been reported.
People Sentiments Negative
- Kang Shin-chul called the clearing a decisive response.
- Pyongyang rejected Seoul's findings and refused a border meeting.