North Korea orders army to 'enter wartime state'

A South Korean soldier — (Image credit: Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images)

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has ordered army units to enter a "wartime state," one of the nation's highest levels of military alert, ratcheting up tensions with South Korea a day after the two countries exchanged fire over their heavily armed border. Front lines are expected to be on standby, fully armed, and in bunkers and gun positions, according to a spokesman for South Korea's Unification Ministry, who spoke with The New York Times.

The shooting started when North Korea fired a shell at a loudspeaker South Korea was using to broadcast anti-Pyongyang propaganda across the border. The communist North, known for its saber-rattling, threatened further military action if South Korea does not shut off the loudspeaker by 5 p.m. Saturday.

In early August, two South Korean soldiers were badly injured when they stepped on land mines while patrolling the South Korean side of the demilitarized zone that has separated North and South Korea since the Korean War ended in an armistice in 1953. South Korean Maj. Gen. Koo Hong-mo has since warned that "North Korea will pay a harsh price proportionate to the provocation that North Korea made."

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Explore More

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.