There are heightened tensions along the Korean border. South Korea has issued an alert for residents living near the heavily fortified border with North Korea. This comes after reports of over 90 balloons carrying suspicious items, believed to be from North Korea, were spotted in the area. The balloons were reported to be carrying trash and possibly even excrement. South Korean military advised people to stay away from these unidentified objects and report them to the authorities. Images published by South Korean media showed balloons carrying plastic bags and scattered trash on the ground, believed to be the contents of landed balloons.
This incident appears to be retaliation for South Korean activist groups sending balloons carrying leaflets critical of the North Korean regime and K-pop music videos across the border for years. North Korea views these balloons as “dirty things” and their vice defence minister threatened to send “mounds of waste-paper and filth” to the South in response.
It’s important to remember that North and South Korea are technically still at war since the Korean War ended with an armistice in the 1950s. This tense situation is further complicated by North Korea’s military buildup and threats towards the South. An expert quoted in the article said that sending balloons is a less risky tactic compared to open military action, but it still poses unnecessary dangers for civilians caught in the middle.
BBC has come up with a 60-second video explaining this saga.
Image—BBC
