A North Korean flag waves in the propaganda village of Gijungdong, visible from South Korea's Taesungdong freedom village within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that separates the two Koreas, near Paju on April 24, 2018. – AFP
North Korea has detonated parts of an inter-Korean road on its side of the heavily fortified border, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff. Around midday, sections of the road north of the military demarcation line were blown up, the Joint Chiefs of Staff informed media via a message. South Korea's military has intensified surveillance and heightened its alert status in response. Seoul had previously warned that Pyongyang was preparing to destroy the roads.
Tensions on the Korean peninsula have escalated due to an ongoing verbal conflict. The North accused its rival of deploying drones over the capital, Pyongyang. On Friday, North Korea claimed that the drones had dropped a large number of anti-North leaflets, labeling it a political and military provocation that could trigger armed conflict. A spokesperson for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff declined to comment on whether the South Korean military or civilians were behind the alleged drone activity.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un convened a meeting with defense and security officials on Monday to address the 'enemy's serious provocation that infringed upon the sovereignty of the DPRK', as reported by state media KCNA. DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the official name of North Korea.
