North Korea Fired at Least 17 Missiles and Over 100 Artillery Shells in Half a Day (Comprehensive)

Indiscriminate Provocations Across Multiple Regions for 6 Hours 36 Minutes
Three Missile Launches in the Morning... One Crossed the NLL
Over 100 Shells Fired into East Sea, Violating 9·19 Agreement Again
Military Scrambles Fighter Jets... Missile Launches North of NLL

Missile impact point of North Korea's missile fired close to our territorial waters south of the NLL

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hee-jun] North Korea violated the September 19 inter-Korean military agreement once again by launching at least 17 missiles, including short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) that crossed the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the East Sea over half a day, and firing around 100 artillery rounds into the maritime buffer zone.

In particular, it escalated the level of provocation by firing ballistic missiles southward for the first time ever, seemingly using the ongoing South Korea-U.S. joint air exercise 'Vigilant Storm,' which started on the 31st of last month, as a pretext for indiscriminate provocations.

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on the 2nd, North Korea's missile launches occurred in three waves. Around 6:51 a.m., four SRBMs were detected launched from Jeongju City and Pihyeon County in North Pyongan Province toward the West Sea.

Two hours later, at approximately 8:51 a.m., three SRBMs were again launched from the Wonsan area in Gangwon Province toward the East Sea. Among these, one missile headed toward Ulleungdo but fell into international waters. The specific impact points were 26 km south of the NLL, 57 km east of Sokcho, and 167 km northwest of Ulleung. This marks the first time since the division of Korea that a North Korean ballistic missile landed near South Korean territorial waters south of the NLL.

Subsequently, starting at 9:12 a.m., about ten additional projectiles presumed to be short-range ballistic missiles and surface-to-air missiles were detected launched toward the East Sea from the areas of Nakwon, Jeongpyeong, and Sinpo in South Hamgyong Province, and toward the West Sea from Oncheon and Hwajinri in South Pyongan Province and Gwail in South Hwanghae Province.

On the 2nd, following North Korea's ballistic missile launch, an early withdrawal order was issued for fishing vessels operating in the northernmost Jeodo fishing grounds in the East Sea. Fishing vessels that had been operating in the fishing grounds are docked at Goseong Daejin Port.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Additionally, around 1:27 p.m., North Korea fired approximately 100 artillery rounds into the northern maritime buffer zone of the East Sea NLL from the Goseong County area in Gangwon Province. This is a clear violation of the September 19 agreement. The South Korean military sent a warning communication to the North, informing them of the breach and urging an immediate halt to the provocations.

From morning until afternoon, North Korea unleashed a barrage of missiles and artillery shells over multiple regions for a total of 6 hours and 36 minutes. Following the detection of missiles heading south of the NLL, President Yoon Suk-yeol convened an emergency National Security Council (NSC) meeting and classified North Korea's provocations as "substantial acts of territorial infringement," ordering a strict response to ensure North Korea pays the price for its actions.

At 8:54 a.m., the military issued an air raid alert for the Ulleungdo area through the Ministry of the Interior and Safety's Civil Defense Warning Control Center and raised the alert posture across all forces. From 11:10 a.m., Air Force F-15K and KF-16 jets conducted precision strikes by launching three air-to-ground missiles into international waters north of the East Sea NLL, corresponding to the missile impact areas provoked by North Korea.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Kim Seung-gyeom closely shared information on North Korea's ballistic missile launches with Combined Forces Command Commander Paul LaCamera during a coordination meeting and confirmed strengthening the combined defense posture against North Korea's threats and provocations.

A military official stated, "North Korea's ballistic missile provocations near our territorial waters south of the NLL are direct and very serious acts that undermine peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and cannot be overlooked," adding, "In preparation for further provocations by North Korea, we will maintain a firm readiness posture capable of overwhelming response to any provocations while closely monitoring related developments through close South Korea-U.S. cooperation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.