North Korea has launched a new type of attack on South Korea, using balloons filled with garbage and manure. On Tuesday night, the South Korean military observed a large number of these balloons arriving from the north. By Wednesday morning, an estimated 150 balloons had landed in South Korea.
The balloons were seen carrying plastic bags filled with trash and excrement. When the balloons fell to the ground, the bags opened up, scattering the contents across streets and open areas.
South Korean authorities have condemned this act as dangerous and harmful. Although many balloons have landed, some are still floating in the air.
Photos show that some garbage bags were tied to two balloons, while others were carried by just one. Responding to this unusual attack, the South Korean military has deployed its explosives ordnance unit and chemical and biological warfare response team to inspect and collect the objects.
North Korea sent 150 balloons filled with garbage and manure to South Korea.
The balloons fell overnight in various locations across the country. pic.twitter.com/16t5IQz3Lq
— Clash Report (@clashreport) May 29, 2024
An alert has been issued, warning residents to stay away from the balloons and to report any sightings to the authorities. The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) confirmed that the balloons contained “filth and garbage.”
The JCS issued a strong statement saying, “North Korea’s actions clearly violate international law and seriously threaten the safety of our citizens. All responsibility arising from the North Korean balloons lies entirely with North Korea, and we sternly warn North Korea to immediately stop its inhumane and low-level actions.”
Responding, North Korea’s vice defence minister released a statement, asserting that they would continue to use “strong power for self-defence” and threatened to send more “mounds of waste-paper and filth” to South Korea.
This action, as per the North Korean state media, is a retaliation against South Korean activists who have been sending balloons with leaflets, food, medicine, radios, and USB sticks containing South Korean news, television dramas, and K-pop videos to North Korea.
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These activists, many of whom are originally from North Korea, have been using balloons, drones, and bottles floating down the cross-border river to send these items. Despite a ban imposed by the South Korean government in 2021 to stop these activities, a top court later ruled the ban unconstitutional, citing it violated freedom of speech.
Kim Kang Il, North Korea’s Vice Minister of National Defense, recently criticized the scattering of leaflets as a dangerous provocation that could be used for military purposes. He accused South Korea of engaging in “psychological warfare” and declared that North Korea would respond in kind.
He stated, “Mounds of wastepaper and filth will soon be scattered over the border areas and the interior of South Korea, and it will directly experience how much effort is required to remove them. When our national sovereignty, security, and interests are violated, we will take action immediately.”
Following through on these threats, North Korea has now sent balloons carrying garbage and filth to South Korea. As South Korea has reacted strongly to this provocation, there are concerns that this ‘garbage war’ could escalate further.
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