North Korea flies garbage-filled balloons into South Korea in tit-for-tat attack | Politics news

South Korea condemns the “low-level” attack, which came amid tensions over the failed satellite launch from Pyongyang.

North Korea has sent hundreds of balloons loaded with garbage and feces across the heavily fortified border into the South.

The South Korean military released photos Wednesday showing garbage around popped balloons. In one photo, a bag was labeled with the word “excrement.” The North said the swarm, which contained toilet paper and suspected animal feces, was a response to South Korean propaganda campaigns using balloons.

“We strongly warn the North to immediately stop its inhumane and shameful actions,” Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. “The North’s actions clearly violate international law and seriously threaten the security of our people,” it added.

The military’s Explosive Ordnance Unit and Chemical and Biological Agents Response Team were dispatched to investigate and collect the objects, and an alert was issued urging residents to stay away and report any sightings to authorities.

The South Korean authorities had already been warned of the attack in advance. Kim Kang Il, the North’s deputy defense minister, warned on Sunday that “mountains of waste paper and dirt” would be sent to the South in “retaliation” for the flights of “dirty things” to the North.

South Korean activists, often led by North Korean defectors, have regularly sent balloons containing leaflets and messages critical of Pyongyang and even USB memory sticks containing K-pop music videos in the other direction.

There has long been anger in Pyongyang over the propaganda campaigns, possibly out of concern that the influx of outside information into the tightly controlled society could pose a threat to Kim Jong Un’s rule.

Previous South Korean governments have tried to prevent activists from carrying out such campaigns, arguing that they would not contribute to peace and would endanger the safety of residents near the border.

A ban on balloon launches introduced in 2021 was later declared unconstitutional by a supreme court because it violated freedom of expression.

Since the Korean War of 1950-1953 ended with an armistice, the two Koreas are formally still at war and are separated by a heavily fortified border.

Tensions flared again this week following Pyongyang’s failed satellite launch.

North Korea attempted to launch a second spy satellite into orbit on Monday. The country successfully launched a spy satellite on its third attempt in November, drawing international criticism.

However, this week’s launch attempt ended with an explosion in the air.

In protest, Seoul had already carried out exercises with fighter jets hours before the attack.

According to a report by the Korean news agency Central News Agency on Wednesday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un criticized the South’s “recklessness.”