North Korea and South Korea exchanged fire twice near border
North Korea twice fired shells near the flashpoint Yellow Sea border with South Korea Wednesday, prompting warning shots from the South’s marines in response, Seoul’s military said.
The incidents fuelled already high tensions along the disputed sea border, which saw bloody naval skirmishes in recent years and a deadly shelling attack on South Korea’s Yeonpyeong island last November.
The first incident came at 1 pm (0400 GMT), when Seoul’s defence ministry said a North Korean shell landed near the border, known as the Northern Limit Line (NLL).
Marines based on Yeonpyeong island broadcast a warning and then fired three warning shots from K-9 self-propelled guns.