DMZ blast very likely caused by North Korean mine, military says
South Korea’s military says interim evidence indicates a North Korean mine seriously injured two soldiers during routine operations south of the military demarcation line.
Lt. Gen. Kwon Dae-won, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, briefs reporters on the suspected land mine explosion in the DMZ at the Defense Ministry in Yongsan District, central Seoul, on Sept. 28.NEWS1
A mine planted by North Korean troops was very likely behind last week's explosion in the demilitarized zone (DMZ), which seriously injured two soldiers, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Monday.
The blast occurred about 10 meters (33 feet) south of the military demarcation line (MDL), according to interim results from a joint site investigation with the United Nations Command (UNC).
"The shape of the crater and the flames at the blast site, the extent of the injured soldiers' wounds and the accounts of personnel on the operation all point to a North Korean mine," Lt. Gen. Kwon Dae-won, vice chairman of the JCS and head of the joint investigation task force, said at a briefing at the Defense Ministry in Yongsan District, central Seoul, at 8:30 p.m. "Taking this into account, we have determined that the cause of this mine explosion is very likely a North Korean military mine."
The blast was not caused by one of South Korea's own mines, the military added, based on the findings and the absence of records of South Korea installing mines in the area.
"Considering the shape of the crater identified during today's site inspection, the accounts of operation personnel about the flames at the time of the explosion and the extent of the injuries, the explosion is presumed not to have been caused by one of our mines," Kwon said.
An initial analysis by the National Forensic Service of material collected from the injured soldiers' gear detected TNT and a brown foreign substance.
A Surion helicopter flies over the southern boundary of the demilitarized zone (DMZ) along the western front in Paju, Gyeonggi, on Sept. 22. Army personnel were seriously injured in a suspected land mine explosion in a nearby section of the DMZ the previous day, and the military is investigating the exact cause of the incident.YONHAP
"Considering that the National Forensic Service's initial analysis detected a brown foreign substance and found no metal fragments, it is certain that the explosion was not caused by one of our mines," Kwon said.
"If the final investigation determines that our military losses were caused by a mine planted by the North Korean military, it means our soldiers were injured by a North Korean mine while carrying out normal DMZ operations south of the military demarcation line [MDL], and all responsibility for this lies with North Korea," Kwon said.
"Our military will take appropriate and commensurate measures in response."
The explosion went off at around 10:50 a.m. on Sept. 21 south of the MDL in the western sector of the DMZ, in an area defended by the Army's 25th Infantry Division in Paju, Gyeonggi. Troops were clearing a new reconnaissance route at the time. A battalion commander and a staff sergeant were seriously injured, and a third soldier suffered minor injuries.
Update: Sept. 28: More information about the South Korean military's findings added.
Update, Sept. 28: More findings from the interim probe added.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
