South Korea demands apology over DMZ blasts as North Korea denies planting mines

South Korea has demanded a formal apology from North Korea over landmine explosions in the Demilitarised Zone that injured three soldiers earlier this month. The latest exchange centres on the western section of the border buffer zone, where the blasts took place on 21 September near the military demarcation line. Seoul says the incident was a clear violation of the armistice that ended active fighting in the Korean War.

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Kang Hyunwoo, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff's director of operations, said the military strongly urged Pyongyang to apologise and take responsible measures to prevent a repeat. Defence Minister Kang Shin-chul said South Korea would consider corresponding measures if a full investigation confirms North Korean responsibility. The United Nations Command said it had identified an active North Korean anti-personnel mine on the South Korean side of the Military Demarcation Line in a joint investigation with Seoul's military.

North Korea has rejected the accusation. Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, called the South Korean assessment a conspiratorial farce and said Seoul was making groundless claims to create a pretext for provocation. She also criticised South Korea for broadcasting warnings and firing warning shots at North Korean troops carrying out front-line fortification work.

Her comments added to the public dispute over who was responsible for the blasts and whether the border incident was deliberate. The case matters because the DMZ remains one of the most heavily fortified frontiers in the world, and landmine incidents there can quickly raise military tensions. The border has been divided since the 1953 armistice, which froze the war without producing a peace treaty.

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Any confirmed use of newly planted mines near a patrol route would deepen mistrust between the two Koreas and could prompt a military response from Seoul. The incident also comes against a wider backdrop of fragile inter-Korean relations and continuing military activity along the border. South Korean officials have said the troops were clearing terrain in advance of work with the United Nations Command, which oversees the armistice on the southern side of the DMZ.

The joint probe has already become part of a broader argument over whether the blasts were an accident, a violation of the armistice, or a deliberate act near the border. What remains unclear is whether the investigation will definitively establish who planted the mines and what specific measures Seoul may take next. South Korean officials have not detailed the possible response, and North Korea has denied crossing the border.

The next developments to watch are any further findings from the joint investigation, a possible reply from Pyongyang, and whether the dispute leads to new military or diplomatic steps along the DMZ.

South Korea says blasts in the Demilitarised Zone last week that wounded three of its soldiers were apparently caused by North Korean mines, and that the incident amounts to a violation of the armistice. Defence Minister Kang Shin-chul told lawmakers that Seoul would take "corresponding measures" in response, although he did not specify what those would be. One soldier lost a foot in the explosions, according to the ministry.

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Kang said the troops were clearing terrain in advance of an operation with the United Nations Command to assess changes caused by North Korean forces south of the Military Demarcation Line. He said the mine detectors used in the area were the latest models, but dense vegetation made the work difficult and may have affected detection. A site investigation on Tuesday also found an unexploded North Korean plastic anti-personnel mine, while military officials said two mines exploded on 21 September and a third was discovered as soldiers withdrew.

The incident has renewed attention on one of the world's most heavily fortified frontiers, where the two Koreas remain technically at war under a 1953 armistice rather than a peace treaty. The DMZ is heavily mined and closely monitored, and landmine incidents have previously heightened tensions between the two sides. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff and the United Nations Command have been carrying out the joint probe into the blast site.

The case matters because any confirmed use of newly planted mines would suggest deliberate action near a patrol route used by South Korean forces, rather than an isolated accident. That would raise the risk of a military response and deepen mistrust between Seoul and Pyongyang. It also comes as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has again called for talks to formally end the Korean War, underlining the political sensitivity of border incidents.

Officials have not said what form Seoul's response might take, and it remains unclear whether the investigation will definitively establish who planted the mines. North Korea has not been quoted in the supplied material, and no timeline has been given for any further measures. The next developments to watch are the final findings of the joint probe, any reaction from Pyongyang and whether the incident prompts new military or diplomatic steps along the border.

South Korea says newly planted North Korean landmines are likely to have caused explosions that injured three of its soldiers in the Demilitarised Zone. The incident happened last week while the troops were clearing a patrol route in the western sector of the border area. Seoul says preliminary findings point to recent terrain changes near the blast site as part of the evidence.

According to South Korea's military, two landmines exploded and a third unexploded mine was later found as soldiers withdrew after the blast on 21 September. Vice chairman Kwon Dae-won of the South Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff said the site was about 10 metres from an area where changes in the terrain were observed and where North Korean forces are believed to have recently planted mines. He said the crater, the pattern of the flames and the extent of the injuries all supported the assessment that North Korean landmines were highly suspected to have caused the blast.

Kwon said that if the investigation concludes Pyongyang was responsible, North Korea would bear full responsibility for the incident. He added that South Korea's military would take appropriate and corresponding measures, although he did not give details. South Korea has also said it will take appropriate and corresponding measures if responsibility is confirmed.

The joint probe was carried out by South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff and the United Nations Command. The incident adds to long-running tensions along one of the world's most heavily fortified frontiers. The Demilitarised Zone is a 248-kilometre-long, four-kilometre-wide buffer zone that has divided the Korean Peninsula since the 1953 armistice, which froze but did not formally end the Korean War.

Although the zone is officially demilitarised, its northern and southern boundaries remain heavily mined and closely monitored. Any confirmed use of newly planted mines would raise the risk of a further military response and deepen mistrust between the two Koreas. The case also comes as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has again called for talks to formally end the Korean War.

That appeal underlines the continuing political sensitivity of border incidents, even as military patrols and clearance work continue in the DMZ. The latest findings suggest the blast was not an isolated accident but may have involved deliberate action near a patrol route used by South Korean forces. That makes the investigation significant not only for military safety but also for wider inter-Korean relations.

What remains unclear is whether the investigation will definitively establish who planted the mines and what response Seoul will choose if it does. South Korean officials have not said what form any corresponding measures might take. The next developments to watch are the final findings of the joint probe, any statement from North Korea and whether the incident prompts new military or diplomatic steps along the border.

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