go through Shama Khalil, Thomas McIntosh, bbc news
ReutersSouth Korea said it would resume propaganda broadcasts targeting North Korea for the first time in six years in response to Pyongyang sending balloons filled with trash across the border.
More than 300 North Korean balloons were spotted on Saturday and Sunday, and about 80 of them landed in South Korea carrying waste paper and plastic sheeting.
North Korea has not yet responded to the news, but Pyongyang considers the propaganda broadcasts from the loudspeakers an act of war and has threatened to blow them up.
Last month, North Korea appeared to have launched at least 200 garbage-laden balloons over the North Korean border. Retaliation for propaganda leaflets sent from the South.
ReutersOver the weekend, North Korea resumed its trash-disposal operations against its neighbors, sending balloons filled with trash across the border into South Korea.
The move was in retaliation for South Korean activists sending 10 balloons containing leaflets critical of the North Korean regime on Friday, AFP reported.
South Korea’s military said there were no more balloons in the air and no dangerous substances were found.
It warned the public not to touch the balloons and to be aware of falling objects.
The military added that members of the public should report any sightings to the nearest police or military unit.
Following the launch of the latest batch of balloons, South Korea’s National Security Council said it would resume border loudspeaker broadcasts on Sunday after agreeing to restart them for the first time since 2018.
On Thursday, a South Korean activist group said it had flown a ball to North Korea, carrying leaflets critical of leader Kim Jong Un, dollar bills and USB flash drives with K-pop videos, which are banned in North Korea.
In recent years, broadcast content has included news from Korea and abroad as well as information about Korean democracy and life.
The South Korean military claims that broadcasts can be heard within 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) of the border during the day and 24 kilometers (15 miles) at night.
In May, a South Korean activist group claimed to have sent 20 balloons to the border carrying anti-Pyongyang leaflets and USB flash drives containing K-pop and music videos.
The Seoul Assembly passed a law in December 2020, Make it a crime to distribute anti-Pyongyang leafletsbut critics have raised concerns related to free speech and human rights.
North Korea also launched balloons south to attack leaders in Seoul.
In one such release in 2016, The balloons were reportedly carrying toilet paper, cigarette butts and trash. Seoul police described them as “dangerous biochemical substances.”
Additional reporting by Jake Kwon in Seoul
