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| ▲ This image, which was carried by North Korea's state media on Oct. 28, 2024, and appears to have been created by the North, shows the flight path of a drone that Pyongyang claimed was sent by the South Korean military. North Korea said it has analyzed the flight control program of the drone that crashed after intruding into the sky of Pyongyang on Oct. 8, and the flight log showed the drone took off from South Korea's border island of Baengnyeong. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ This photo, carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on Oct. 19, 2024, shows a damaged drone that Pyongyang claims was sent by the South Korean military. The drone is being described by Pyongyang as the same type that was publicly displayed on Armed Forces Day in Seoul earlier this month. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap) |
(LEAD) N Korea-drone incursions
(LEAD) N. Korea claims S. Korean drone took off from western border island in Oct. for incursion into Pyongyang
(ATTN: UPDATES with more details throughout; ADDS photo, byline)
By Kim Soo-yeon
SEOUL, Oct. 28 (Yonhap) -- North Korea said Monday that its analysis of the flight log of a drone that crashed in Pyongyang earlier this month showed it took off from a South Korean border island in the Yellow Sea, insisting that the South Korean military is behind what it claimed were South Korea's drone incursions.
North Korea earlier claimed that South Korean drones carrying anti-North Korea propaganda leaflets were detected in the night skies over Pyongyang three times this month and threatened to respond with force if such flights occur again.
Announcing the final results of its probe into the drone incursions, North Korea's defense ministry said it has analyzed the flight control program from the remains of a drone that crashed after intruding into the North's capital on Oct. 8, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The North said the drone took off from South Korea's border island of Baengnyeong in the Yellow Sea at 11:25:30 p.m. on Oct. 8 and intruded into the territorial air of North Korea.
The drone scattered "political motivational rubbish" in the sky over areas between the building of North Korea's foreign ministry and the Sungri metro station in Pyongyang at 1:32:08 a.m., as well as the building of the defense ministry at 1:35:11 a.m., on Oct. 9, the KCNA said.
North Korea published an illustration that it appears to have created to show the flight route of the drone. The flight route, marked as a green line, rises clockwise along the western coastline after starting from Baengnyeong Island, enters the sky of Pyongyang and goes back down the same path to return to the island.
Among the 238 flight plans and logs of the drone, all flight data, except that on Oct. 8, showed that the drone flew in the South Korean territory, the KCNA said. North Korea also claimed the crashed drone had data of a plan and records to scatter propaganda leaflets over Pyongyang.
The results "clearly proved the most vulgar and shameless provocative nature of the ROK military gangsters who have persistently evaded the responsibility for the illegal intrusion by their drone into the sky above the capital city of the DPRK," a spokesperson at the North's defense ministry said.
ROK stands for South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea, and DPRK is the acronym of North Korea's full name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
North Korea warned that "the source of all misfortunes and provocations will disappear forever by the merciless offensive" by the North if South Korea once again infringes upon its sovereignty.
South Korea's military has said it could not confirm whether the North's drone claims are true. In response to North Korea's military threat, Seoul's defense ministry has warned that the North will face "the end of its regime" if it causes any harm to South Korean people.
Meanwhile, Kim Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, issued a statement that apparently reflected her mockery and irritation over South Korea showing no response to Pyongyang's drone claims.
She suggested an "assumed" situation where an unidentified drone flew over the sky of Seoul and scattered leaflets critical of President Yoon Suk Yeol.
"The military, individual organization or any individual of the DPRK did not let fly a drone. We can not confirm it and it is worthless to give answer to it," Kim said.
"This is an assumed situation. Under such situation, I'd like to see once how the dirty curs in Seoul bark. The world may also be curious about it."
(END)
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