UPDATEED=North Korea shells South Korean military unit forcing Seoul to return fire

MORE@ http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3204452/North-Korea-shells-South-Korean-military-unit-stationed-countries-shared-border.html

North Korea shells South Korean military unit forcing Seoul to return fire with scores of its own rockets as tensions over cross-border loudspeaker propaganda intensifies

• Attack is believed to have taken place on the western stretch of the border 
  
• Local media reported the shelling, citing sources in South Korea's military 
  
• South Korea's defence ministry said it couldn't immediately confirm reports
  
• Shelling comes at a time of elevated tension between the North and South
  

By John Hall for MailOnline
Published: 03:12 EST, 20 August 2015  | Updated: 05:53 EST, 20 August 2015



South Korea's military fired dozens of shells at rival North Korea this morning after the North launched a single artillery round at a South Korean border town.
Seoul's defence ministry said in a statement that its own missiles had landed at the exact spot from where North Korea had fired its single shell. 
There were no other immediate details from the military, but it appeared that North Korea did not respond to South Korea's returned fire. 

It is believed that the North's shells may have been targeting South Korean loudspeakers that have been broadcasting anti-Pyongyang propaganda over the border for the past week - an unorthodox practice not used by either side in the conflict since 2004.
North Korea later issued a warning for Seoul to stop the pro-democracy broadcasts within 48 hours or face the prospect of further strikes on the loudspeakers and the military units which guard them.

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North Korea has shelled a South Korean military unit on the western section of the inter-Korean border, the South's Yonhap news agency said, citing military sources. Picture shows the North testing a shell 

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Cautious: South Korean solders patrol the shared border. Today's shelling comes at a time of elevated cross-border tensions, following a landmine attack earlier this month
About 80 residents in the South Korean town where the shell fell, Yeoncheon, were evacuated to underground bunkers, and authorities urged other residents to evacuate, a Yeoncheon official said, requesting anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media. 

http://www.rt.com/news/312902-south-korea-shells-north/
S. Korea orders civilian evacuation near western border, after exchanging fire with N. Korea
Published time: 20 Aug, 2015 08:39Edited time: 20 Aug, 2015 10:42
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FILE PHOTO KCNA / Reuters

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South Korean military shelled the North’s border area in response to an apparent earlier shelling from the North.
South Korean military fired dozens of artillery shells across the border on Thursday, the Yonhap news agency reported. The attack came in response to apparent shelling of the southern part of the border area by the North’s military.
"A barrage of supposedly North Korean military shells was detected by (South Korea's) anti-battery radar" at 3:52pm, a ministry official said as cited by the agency.
Earlier the South Korean Defense Ministry said shelling from across the border was detected by counter-battery radar, but that the South didn’t return fire.
READ MORE: N. Korea threatens to ‘invade US’ unless S. Korean military exercises aren’t halted
No casualties or damage on the ground was reported after the alleged shelling from the North. However, South Korea ordered the evacuation of civilians from the border area to the west of the Korean Peninsula, where the incident happened.
According to the KBS broadcaster in South Korea, the North’s shells targeted a military loudspeaker that has been broadcasting anti-Pyongyang propaganda across the border. North Korea has repeatedly demanded the removal of such loudspeakers, calling them provocative.
In the wake of the fire exchange, North Korea reiterated its demands, saying propaganda must cease within 48 hours or military action will ensue, according to the South Korean Defense Ministry.


Seoul is to hold an emergency session of the National Security Council to discuss the development.
Relations between North and South Korea are tenser than usual at the moment in the wake of a land mine incident this month. Two South Korean troops were hit by a primitive landmine explosion, with Seoul blaming Pyongyang, an accusation the North denied. Mounting propaganda loudspeakers along the borders was the South’s response to the incident.


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http://news.sky.com/story/1539257/north-korea-prepares-for-war-as-missiles-moved

North Korea Prepares For War As Missiles Moved
   
Kim Jong-Un reportedly tells his forces to prepare for military action as tensions continue to rise on the Korean Peninsula.
09:31, UK, Friday 21 August 2015

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Kim Jong-Un hosts an emergency meeting of the Central Military Commission

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North Korea's military are under orders to be "fully ready" for war, according to a South Korean news agency.

Kim Jong-Un declared a "quasi-state of war" after convening an emergency meeting of the communist country's military leaders, Yonhap reported North Korean TV as saying.
Analysis: Korea Tension A 'Dangerous Game'
The movement of vehicles in North Korea carrying short range Scud and medium-range Rodong missiles has been detected by US and South Korean surveillance, according to the same agency.
A military official said a meeting of senior party and defence officials led by the North Korean leader "reviewed and approved the final attack operation".
<img src="http://media.skynews.com/media/images/generated/2015/8/20/413054/default/v1/north-south-korea-1-206x155.jpg" class="image__item " alt="A map showing the location of North and South Korea." />
Propaganda vans with loudspeakers have also been mobilised in Pyongyang to broadcast the news that the country is on a war footing.
In the South, the military is on its highest state of alert.
<img src="http://media.skynews.com/media/images/generated/2015/3/5/374960/default/v1/teaser-for-video-2-206x116.jpg" class="image__item video__teaser-image" alt="" />
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The North earlier threatened military action if the South did not stop pumping propaganda into the North across the border using loudspeakers by 5pm on Saturday Pyongyang time (9.30am in the UK).
Anti-Pyongyang statements have been broadcast across the frontier recently.
On Thursday, the North responded by firing a shell, which is believed to have been aimed at one of the loudspeakers.
The projectile landed in an area of the demilitarised zone (DMZ) around 35 miles (60km) north of Seoul.
In response, South Korea fired tens of 155mm artillery rounds at the location where the shell came from, the country's defence ministry said.
There were no reports of any injuries.
North Korea denied provoking the exchange of fire, accusing Seoul of using what it called a "nonexistent pretext".
North Korean Central Television said: "Commanders of the Korean People's Army were hastily dispatched to the front-line troops to command military operations to destroy psychological warfare tools if the enemy does not stop the propaganda broadcast within 48 hours and prepare against the enemy's possible counteractions."
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South Korea says it has tried to send a message calling on the North to apologise for the recent artillery fire and to punish those responsible.
But the country's Unification Ministry said North Korea has refused to receive the message.
The United States has expressed concern about the situation, urging North Korea to stop threatening regional security. 
State Department spokeswoman Katrina Adams told Yonhap: "The United States remains steadfast in its commitments to the defense and its allies, and will continue to coordinate closely with the ROK."
The UN said it was following tensions "with serious concern".
About 28,500 American troops are stationed in South Korea, with the US having retained bases following the end of the Korean War in 1953.
The three-year conflict was ended by a ceasefire, rather than a peace treaty, meaning both countries technically remain at war.