North Korea fires 200 artillery shells close to Yeonpyeong Island

South Korea has reportedly ordered civilians on the border island of Yeonpyeong to maneuver to shelters after North Korea fired 200 artillery shells into the ocean close to the island, native information media mentioned on Friday.

“We announced the evacuation after receiving a call from a military unit saying it was carrying out a maritime strike on Yeongpyeong Island as it has a situation with a North Korean provocation,” an official instructed Yonhap News. The emergency evacuation order was issued at 12:02 p.m. and 12:30 p.m. native time on Friday, the report mentioned.

“The North Korean military fired more than 200 rounds from around 9:00 to 11:00 today in the area of ​​Cape Jangsan, north of Baengnyeong Island, and Cape Sansan, north of Yeonpyeong Island,” South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Workers mentioned, in response to NBC Information. No accidents have been reported to this point.

In response, the South Korean marine corps requested the evacuation of residents of Yeonpyeong and scheduled a “maritime shooting exercise” for the afternoon, Chosun Ilbo reported, citing an official from the Yeonpyeong township workplace.

The official added that the majority residents have gone to the shelters, and that the tip time for the evacuation train not but been decided.

The Chosun Ilbo added: “It is known that the Marine Corps’ maritime shooting training was a response to this,” referring the to North Korean firing.

Yeonpyeong Island is shut to what’s often called the “Northern Limit Line,” the de facto maritime border that separates the 2 Koreas. Not one of the shells fired on Friday crossed the NLL, Reuters mentioned.

In a serious escalation of tensions in November 2010, the island was bombarded by North Korean artillery, killing two South Korean marines and two civilians. Not less than 18 folks had been injured at the moment, and greater than 100 buildings broken.

At the time, then United Nations secretary common Ban Ki-moon known as it one of many “gravest incidents” for the reason that Korean Conflict.

North Korea and South Korea are formally nonetheless at struggle, because the Korean Conflict in 1953 ended with an armistice and never a proper peace treaty.