Explosion in Korean DMZ!

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — An explosion injured three South Korean military officers Monday inside the heavily fortified Demilitarized Zone separating the Koreas, officials said.

South Korea’s Defense Ministry said the explosion occurred during an unspecified operation near the military demarcation line in the western section of the border buffer zone, commonly known as the DMZ.

The cause of the blast was not immediately clear, the ministry said.

South Korean officials did not say whether it was possible the explosion was caused by a land mine planted by North Korea, which has added mines, anti-tank barriers and other front line fortifications in recent months as relations between the war-divided rivals have sharply deteriorated. Seoul’s Defense Ministry didn’t immediately respond when asked by The Associated Press whether the incident prompted the military to enhance border security.

Two of the officers were airlifted from the site by helicopter, while the third was transported by land before being airlifted, according to the ministry. The officers are being treated at a military hospital near the capital Seoul.

The DMZ, which is 248 kilometers (155 miles) long and 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) wide, is one of the world’s most heavily armed borders. An estimated 2 million mines are peppered inside and near the border, which also is guarded by barbed wire fences, tank traps and combat troops on both sides. The zone is a legacy of the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, which ended with an armistice but not a peace treaty.

Hal Turner comment: It is the first such incident since 2015.

Source: AP News