"North Korean Troops Appeared Since About a Year Ago... Warning Shots Fired Multiple Times"

[Anchor]

It has been confirmed that the site of the landmine explosion on the western front was an area where North Korean soldiers frequently entered starting about a year ago, and that the South Korean military had chased them away by firing warning shots on multiple occasions. For this reason, the South Korean military appears to have estimated that the landmine was planted around a year ago.

Defense specialist reporter Kim Taehun reports.

[Reporter]

This is a photograph of the scene of the western front landmine explosion released by the Joint Chiefs of Staff on September 28.

The grass around the blast crater marked with a circle has grown to about calf-height on an adult male.

It does not appear to be an overgrown jungle where no one has ever set foot.

A key official at the Ministry of National Defense told SBS, "The explosion site is an area where North Korean troops have frequently appeared since about a year ago."

This implies that North Korea conducted some form of work there as part of its "border fortification."

The military estimates that the landmine that exploded this time was also laid during fortification work that began about a year ago.

The official added, "North Korean troops often crossed the Military Demarcation Line into that area, and our military fired warning shots multiple times."

In particular, the site where the landmine explosion occurred is known to be a spot where the standards for the Military Demarcation Line differ slightly among the South Korean military, the North Korean military, and the UN Command.

Another defense official stated, "It is a tricky area to demarcate borders because it lies along a river with many bends," adding, "Even North Korean troops are confused about whether it is south or north of the Military Demarcation Line."

According to the official, when South Korean troops fired warning shots at North Korean soldiers who had approached thinking they were north of the Military Demarcation Line, the North Korean soldiers would belatedly realize they had crossed over mistakenly, scramble in confusion, and hastily retreat.

The official especially noted, "The explosion occurred in a place frequently entered by North Korean troops, and based on the shape of the fragments and how they scattered as initially described by the injured, we gave weight to the possibility of a North Korean landmine explosion from the very beginning."

However, the official added that the start of the on-site investigation to verify that it was a North Korean landmine was somewhat delayed due to practical reasons, as the wounded soldiers could not immediately guide investigators at the scene.

Video by Kim Hyeon-sang | Video Editing by Jeong Seong-hun | Graphics by Yang Gi-tae
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.