Satellite photos show S. Korea's counterfire hit N. Korean barracks
SEOUL, Dec. 2 (Yonhap) -- Satellite images showed that counterfire by South Korea's military in response to North Korea's Nov. 23 artillery attack hit hard one of the North's barracks near the tense Yellow Sea border, indicating "severe human casualties," a lawmaker said Thursday.
The North's daylight artillery bombardment left four people dead, including two civilians, on Yeonpyeong Island, the first strike on a civilian area since the 1950-53 Korean War. South Korean marines on the island shot back with some 80 rounds minutes after the North's shelling.
Mudo is actually South of this North Korean land mass. | The numbers 1-4 show Four Multiple Rocket Launch batteries positions two days later. |
"About 10 artillery shells fired by our military (South Korean Marines firing K9 self-propelled howitzers) landed onto a military unit compound in Mu-do (in North Korea) and one of them directly hit a barrack," said Rep. Kwon Young-se of the ruling Grand National Party, citing two satellite images provided by the nation's spy agency. Kwon is the head of the National Assembly's intelligence committee.
"There might have been severe human casualties," Kwon told reporters after a parliament committee meeting with officials from the National Intelligence Service (NIS). Mu-do is a small island situated north of the Yellow Sea border where an North Korean artillery battalion launched the attack.
The NIS told lawmakers that, out of the 80 rounds, 15 shells fell onto Mu-do and another 30 landed onto Kaemori, another North Korean area where the artillery attack was also launched, Kwon said.
South Korea's military has said it presumed to have inflicted "severe damage" on North Korea when it returned fire.
North Korea's military base on Mu-do, seen from S. Korea's Yeonpyeong Island, reveals signs of damage from the South's counterfire inflicted during the Nov. 23 gunfire exchanges. (Yonhap)
The KWB Notes: I seriously doubt that striking the barracks would have caused casualties SINCE they were all busy firing shells at US at the time…
UPDATE: See next post, the artillery counter-fire missed them by 'that much'. Considering the distances, different target areas, only THREE K-9 able to fire back, targeting radar system not linked to the K-9's system we were lucky to get close enough (150 meters) to cause the B-21 122mm Multiple Rocket Launch battery of six vehicles to cease firing and 'bug out'. Delays in 'permission to fire' for 13 min. from higher command due to the Rules of Engagement, also added to the ability of the North MRL battery to relocate, probably after the near misses.
The ROK Marines did outstanding, considering they were under fire for an hour, and exposure to heavy incoming lead to 16 Marines NOT soldiers being wounded, 2 Killed-In-Action as they rushed back to their post.
UPDATE: Wounded Civilians are not mentioned in most articles but 28 civilians suffered injury from flying shrapnel, pieces of debris, and burns from thermobaric or fuel-air type of blasts. Over 70 houses completely or heavily damaged. About 200 have returned to the homes but most come back then quickly leave back to mainland. They are still staying in large bathhouses or Gym Jil Bangs in Incheon city.
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Incheon Mayor Misspeaks
Rival parties embarrassed by blunders on Yeonpyeong Island
This time, the bitter criticisms started with a faux pas committed by Incheon Mayor Song Young-gil of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) during a visit to the devastated island of Yeonpyeong on Nov. 24, one day after it was bombarded by North Korean artillery shells. The unprecedented attack across the Yellow Sea border dividing the two Koreas left four people dead, including two civilians, and 18 others wounded. Dozens of houses caught fire and collapsed, while nearly 70 percent of the island's forests and fields were wiped out.
The mayor, whose jurisdiction includes the attacked island, pulled a joke when he picked up a soot-covered bottle of the Korean alcoholic beverage soju from the ground and called it "real poktanju," according to witnesses, referring to a popular after-hours drink that mixes beer with soju and roughly translates to "bomb shot."
Korean Women Rethink Military Service
According to a 2008 survey conducted on 4,355 teenagers nationwide, 56.3 percent viewed North Korean civilians as "brothers," while 12.8 percent called them "enemies."
But observers say there is a changing attitude toward the communist neighbor among the post-war generations who grew up in abundance and considered the horrors of the three-year war something from a distant past.
"While serving in the military near the demilitarized zone, I got a very clear understanding of why we fight: We have an enemy across the border. It is sad that people who were once brothers have to fight each other, but that is what we are facing here now," said Baek Jeong-hwan, 28, who served in a battalion in northern Gangwon Province, near the border with North Korea.
The KWB Notes: Well, after the attack on the 23rd of November the numbers most likely have changed. Everyone of the KWB’s students are angry and ‘hate’ the Commie North NOW. They have awakened the youth to reality.
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