Koreas Exchange Fire near Heavily Fortified Border

Seoul, October 20 (QNA) – South and North Korea exchanged fire across the heavily fortified border on Sunday in the latest clash on the divided Korean Peninsula amid concerns that tensions could scuttle high-level talks between the two sides.

There were no reports of casualties or property damage in South Korea, though no details were immediately known about the situation in the North.

The incident occurred when South Korea, after broadcasting warning messages, fired warning shots against about ten North Korean soldiers who were approaching the military demarcation line in Paju, said an official of South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Earlier Sunday, South Korea had aired warning messages to the North Korean soldiers who were attempting to walk toward the military demarcation line, the official said.

After South Korea’s warning shots, North Korea apparently fired back against South Korea, the official said, noting two marks from North Korean rounds were found in a South Korean guard post.

South Korea also returned fire against North Korea, the official said, adding that the exchange of fire lasted about 10 minutes. (QNA)

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QNA 0809 GMT 2014/10/20