Seoul says North Korean mines likely behind DMZ blasts | Today’s news
South Korea’s military said North Korean mines were highly likely to have caused the explosions that injured three of its soldiers in the demilitarized zone last week, and vowed to respond if a final investigation confirmed Pyongyang’s involvement.
The two explosions occurred about 10 meters south of the military demarcation line on Sept. 21 as an 18-member unit was opening a new search route to examine signs of suspected North Korean mine-laying, Joint Chiefs of Staff Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-won said at a briefing on Monday. Two soldiers were seriously injured and one suffered minor injuries in the September 21 incident. All three remain hospitalized.
There is no record of South Korean forces laying mines in the area, while evidence of North Korea laying mines nearby was found in September 2025, Kwon said. A preliminary forensic examination found traces of TNT and brown material on the soldiers’ equipment, but none of the metal fragments expected from a South Korean mine.
President Lee Jae Myung called for a quick investigation into the explosions and said that the necessary measures should then be taken based on the findings.
“If the final investigation determines that our soldiers were injured by a mine planted by North Korean forces,” the North will bear full responsibility and Seoul will take “appropriate and appropriate measures,” Kwon said. He added that the soldiers were carrying out a routine operation south of the military demarcation line.
The incident is reminiscent of a 2015 landmine explosion in the DMZ that seriously injured two South Korean soldiers. Seoul then responded by resuming cross-border propaganda broadcasts as tensions between the two neighbors escalated to their worst level in years.
The military has not yet determined whether the mine was planted at the site or moved from elsewhere, said Yang Jin-hyuk, operations director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The JCS and the Defense Ministry will consider military and political options, he said, without elaborating on South Korea’s response.
Soldiers reported seeing a brown rectangular object buried near the site of the first explosion that resembled a North Korean plastic anti-personnel mine, Yang said. Investigators still examined the object. South Korean and U.N. command staff are surveying the area and planning further work before releasing final findings.
This article was generated from an automated news agency source without text modification.
