North Korean soldiers 'briefly' cross border, trigger gunshots from South

ISTANBUL

The North Korean soldiers “briefly” crossed the border, triggering gunshots from the South Korean side, Seoul claimed on Tuesday.

Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) of the South Korean military said the soldiers from the North crossed the military demarcation line (MDL) within the demilitarized zone (DMZ) on Sunday afternoon, Seoul-based Yonhap reported.

“The South Korean military conducted warning broadcasts and fired warning shots, prompting the North Koreans to return to their side of the border,” said the JCS spokesman Col. Lee Sung-jun.

Lee said: “The military assesses the soldiers, who were working on an unspecified task inside the DMZ, did not intend to cross the MDL, considering that they returned immediately after the warning shots.”

The cross-border activity by North Korean soldiers happened at a time when tensions between the divided Koreas are running high due to reciprocal propaganda activities.

Pyongyang has sent trash balloons into the South, and Seoul has been blaring loudspeakers along the border and distributing anti-regime pamphlets.

The Koreas are divided since the 1950s Korean War which ended in an armistice not a cease-fire.

Along the border, the two Koreas are separated by a demilitarized zone.