North Korea’s mines likely behind DMZ explosions, says Seoul

SEOUL – South Korea’s military said North Korean mines were highly likely to have caused blasts that injured three of its soldiers in the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) last week, and vowed to respond if a final investigation confirms Pyongyang’s involvement.

The two blasts occurred on Sept 21 about 10m south of the Military Demarcation Line as an 18-member unit was opening a new search path to inspect signs of suspected North Korean mine-laying, Joint Chiefs of Staff vice-chairman Kwon Dae-won said in a briefing on Sept 28.

Two soldiers were seriously injured and one sustained minor injuries in the incident on Sept 21. All three remain hospitalised. 

There is no record of South Korean forces laying mines in the area, while evidence of North Korean mine-laying nearby was found in September 2025, Kwon said.

A preliminary forensic examination found traces of TNT – an explosive substance – and brown material on the soldiers’ equipment, but none of the metal fragments that would be expected from a South Korean mine. 

South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung called for a swift investigation into the explosions and said necessary measures should be taken based on the findings.

“If the final investigation determines that our troops were injured by a mine planted by North Korean forces,” the North would bear full responsibility and Seoul would take “appropriate and corresponding measures”, Kwon said.

He added the soldiers had been carrying out a routine operation south of the Military Demarcation Line. 

The incident is reminiscent of a 2015 land mines blast in the DMZ that severely injured two South Korean soldiers.

Seoul then responded by restarting propaganda broadcasts across the border, as tensions between the two neighbours intensified to their worst state in years. 

The military has yet to determine whether the mine was planted at the site or had been displaced from elsewhere, said Yang Jin-hyuk, the Joint Chiefs of Staff’s (JCS) operations director.

The JCS and defence ministry will consider military and policy options, respectively, he said, without specifying South Korea’s response.

Soldiers reported seeing a brown, rectangular object buried near the first blast site that resembled a North Korean plastic anti-personnel mine, Yang said. Investigators have yet to examine the object.

South Korean and United Nations Command personnel have been investigating the area and plan further work before releasing a final finding. BLOOMBERG