Explosion in Demilitarised Zone injures South Korean soldier

A South Korean soldier was wounded by an explosion along the line dividing North and South Korea while on patrol, and his condition is stable.

The blast occurred at 9:20 a.m. on the western front of the Demilitarised Zone in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, for reasons that remain unknown, Caliber.Az reports, citing The Korea Times.

The 24-year-old army staff sergeant, who was carrying out a mission to detect land mines on the southern side of the inter-Korean border, is believed to have suffered an ankle fracture as a result of the explosion.

Officials said he was equipped with anti-mine gear and sustained injuries that are not life-threatening.

Military authorities are investigating the exact cause of the incident.

The Military Demarcation Line (MDL) lies within the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ), a four-kilometre-wide buffer stretching 250 kilometres (160 miles) across the Korean Peninsula. The DMZ has become both an unintended wildlife sanctuary and a deadly minefield.

The recent explosion comes shortly after Seoul proposed military talks with North Korea, marking the first such initiative in years. In its proposal, South Korea noted that many MDL markers installed under the 1953 armistice have vanished over time, resulting in “different perceptions of the boundary in certain areas by both sides.”

Technically, Seoul and Pyongyang remain at war, as the armistice that ended active fighting in 1953 was never replaced by a formal peace treaty. This year alone, South Korea reported around ten incursions by North Korean troops.

The dangers of the DMZ are not new. In 2015, two South Korean soldiers were seriously injured by landmines planted by the North during a patrol south of the border—one lost both legs, while the other had a foot amputated.

By Jeyhun Aghazada