South Korea Shells North Korea After Detecting ‘Small Rocket’

North Korea Believed to Have Attacked Loudspeaker

Tensions are once again soaring on the Korean Peninsula, with news that South Korea has fired 36 artillery rounds at targets inside North Korea, a move they called “retaliation” after a detected, but unconfirmed, small projectile crossing the border from the north.

Officials say they believe North Korea fired a “small rocket” at a government loudspeaker in South Korea in response to the broadcasts of anti-north propaganda from it. North Korea had been complaining about the propaganda broadcasts for awhile.

Both sides have insisted their were no casualties in the incident, and South Korea says it is raising its alert status to the highest theoretical level, while stepping up their broadcasts through the loudspeakers aimed at North Korean soil.

The two Koreas have been at war since 1950, with no formal peace deal ever signed. The US is a party to this war as well, on the side of South Korea, and keeps a significant military garrison on the border. Exchange of fire across the border is not unusual, and commonly leads to tit-for-tat escalations for several days or weeks that follow.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.