North Korea fired artillery shells at a Southern guard post yesterday in one of the worst border clashes in recent years, Seoul military officials said.
The two Koreas accused each other of provocation on the heavily fortified border, with Pyongyang claiming several North Korean soldiers had been wounded.
Pyongyang radio said North Korean soldiers were carrying out normal reconnaissance when South Korean troops opened fire. Political analysts in Seoul, however, said the incident was engineered by Pyongyang mainly to rally domestic support behind North Korean leader Kim Jong-il at a time of famine and economic collapse.