South Korea says North has launched more rubbish-filled balloons across border
5 September 2024, 11:54
North Korea has flown thousands of balloons toward South Korea to drop substances such as wastepaper, cigarette butts and even manure since May.
North Korea has sent more rubbish-carrying balloons toward South Korea, officials said on Thursday, in the latest round of Cold War-style assaults between the two.
South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said it detected more balloons launched from North Korea on Thursday morning, following other launches from the previous evening.
Since May, North Korea has flown thousands of balloons toward South Korea to drop substances such as wastepaper, cloth scraps, cigarette butts and even manure.
It has been described as retaliation against South Korean civilian activists who fly anti-North Korean propaganda leaflets across the border.
North Korea is extremely sensitive to any outside criticism of its authoritarian leadership and its third-generation ruler, Kim Jong Un.
The joint chiefs said North Korea launched around 420 balloons from Wednesday evening to early on Thursday.
About 20 of them have been discovered so far in Seoul, the South Korean capital, and the nearby Gyeonggi province.
It said the balloons that landed were filled with paper waste, plastic bottles and other rubbish but contained no hazardous materials.
The joint chiefs said North Korea was launching another set of balloons as of 9am.
It advised people to report to the police or military if they see any fallen balloons and not to touch them.
An Associated Press photojournalist spotted several sets of white balloons, tied in pairs, floating in the air at the Korean border from an observatory in the South Korean border city of Paju.
Seoul’s city government issued text alerts on Wednesday evening as the North Korean balloons began appearing over South Korean territory, advising people to stay indoors and beware of objects dropping from the sky.
Rubbish carried by at least one North Korean balloon fell on the South Korean presidential compound in July, raising concerns about the vulnerability of key South Korean facilities.
Officials said the balloon contained no dangerous materials and no one was hurt.
South Korea, in response to the North Korean balloons, has reactivated its front-line loudspeakers, blasting anti-North messages and K-pop songs toward its Korean neighbour.
The tit-for-tat Cold War-style campaigns add to tensions fueled by North Korea’s growing nuclear ambitions, as well as South Korea’s expansion of joint military exercises with the United States.
