South Korea has launched a probe into the death of one of its sergeants as tensions between North Korea continue to intensify.
Seoul’s Defence Ministry said that the officer died after suffering “external injuries” at a frontline unit in Cheorwon, near the border on Monday morning.
The exact cause and circumstance of his death is currently unknown. The Ministry said military and civilian investigators are now examining the case.
North Korea ups border confrontation
It is not currently clear whether the staff sergeant’s death is related to border tensions between the two Koreas, which appear to have ramped-up in recent weeks.
On 27 October, North Korea looked to be flaunting its weaponry after visitors to a South Korean observatory that looks into the country saw artillery pieces with their barrels pointed south. One of the vehicles spotted by witnesses appeared to be a self-propelled 122-mm howitzer, an older North Korean artillery system believed to have entered service in the late 1970s.
The howitzer has a maximum range of about 15 miles, putting areas such as the South Korean town of Gimpo where the observatory is located within reach, although it is less powerful than newer artillery systems.
Yang Uk, a military expert at Seoul's Asan Institute for Policy Studies, said the move was more a “display of firepower” than a meaningful increase in combat capability.
“The fact that it was positioned where it can be easily seen suggests it was deployed to be noticed,” he added.
‘Additional tactical weapons’
The move comes after the North Korea UN representative accused Seoul of using a landmine blast that injured three South Korean soldiers to depict Pyongyang's border construction as a military incursion.
Seoul has demanded an apology for the explosion that occurred on September 21, in the western sector of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). It said the mine was planted by North Korean troops and constituted a violation of the Korean War Armistice Agreement.
North Korea has always denied any involvement in the incident.
In recent weeks, North Korea has also threatened to re-deploy loudspeaker broadcasts along the border and “additional tactical weapons”.
Read MoreNorth Korea tests missile-mounted cluster bomb warheads in military push
Call of Duty maker apologises for using footage of Itaewon crowd crush in video game
Kim Jong Un says North Korea’s goal is ‘absolute superiority’ in drone warfare
