SEOUL: A South Korean soldier mistakenly fired a machine gun near the border with North Korea, prompting the military to inform Pyongyang that the shooting was unintentional, a report said Sunday.

Four live rounds were fired during a training along the border in Gangwon province on Saturday evening, Yonhap news agency reported, citing South Korean military officials.

All of the bullets landed on the South’s side and no damage was reported.

The military unit immediately informed North Korea that the firings were not intentional and stepped up readiness posture, the officials said.

“No particular signs have been detected from the North’s side, and an investigation is under way over the exact circumstances of the incident,” an unnamed military official told Yonhap.

The two Koreas technically remain at war after fighting was halted by an armistice in 1953, and are separated by the four-kilometre-wide demilitarised zone (DMZ) that runs for 250 kilometres (160 miles) across the Korean peninsula.

Published in Dawn, January 30th, 2023

Opinion

Editorial

Smog hazard
Updated 05 Nov, 2024

Smog hazard

The catastrophe unfolding in Lahore is a product of authorities’ repeated failure to recognise environmental impact of rapid urbanisation.
Monetary policy
05 Nov, 2024

Monetary policy

IN an aggressive move, the State Bank on Monday reduced its key policy rate by a hefty 250bps to 15pc. This is the...
Cultural power
05 Nov, 2024

Cultural power

AS vital modes of communication, art and culture have the power to overcome social and international barriers....
Disregarding CCI
Updated 04 Nov, 2024

Disregarding CCI

The failure to regularly convene CCI meetings means that the process of democratic decision-making is falling apart.
Defeating TB
04 Nov, 2024

Defeating TB

CONSIDERING the fact that Pakistan has the fifth highest burden of tuberculosis in the world as per the World Health...
Ceasefire charade
Updated 04 Nov, 2024

Ceasefire charade

The US talks of peace, while simultaneously arming and funding their Israeli allies, are doomed to fail, and are little more than a charade.