North and South Korean border guards exchange fire

August 1, 2006

North Korean and South Korean border guards exchanged fire yesterday across the border, the first such incident in about a year.

The exchange occurred on July 31, 2006 at sundown, when, according to a claim from Major Kim-Tae-hoon of South Korea, North Korean soldiers fired two shots at a South Korean guard post in the eastern Korean de-militarised zone.

Major Kim Tae-hoon also said that South Koreans returned six rounds of fire.

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (the North) and the Republic of Korea (the South) have been at war since 1950, the beginning of the, which had no peace treaty which was signed by the two parties. The United Nations, which supervises the armistice that stopped major hostilities during the Korean War, will investigate the event and ask the North Koreans for an explanation.