DTN News: South Korean Navy Ship Sinks Near Border With North
Source: DTN News / AFP
(NSI News Source Info) SEOUL, South Korean - March 27, 2010: A South Korean navy ship with 104 people on board sank near the North Korean border Friday after an unexpl
ained explosion, military officials said, and a news report said several sailors were killed.
South Korea's government called an emergency security meeting but a presidential spokeswoman said it was still unclear whether the sinking resulted from a clash with North Korea.
Another South Korean naval vessel had opened fire on an unidentified object but it was later found to be a flock of birds, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
The Cheonan, a 1,200-ton corvette, sank late in the evening near Baengnyeong island in the Yellow Sea, which lies between the Korean peninsula and China.
Media reports said six naval ships, two coastguard vessels and four other craft were involved in a rescue operation.
A JCS spokesman said 58 crew members had so far been rescued but had no details on any fatalities.
Yonhap news agency quoted naval officials as saying several bodies were retrieved but gave no exact figure. Seven crewmen were airlifted to hospital.
"For now, it is not certain whether North Korea is related" to the incident, presidential spokeswoman Kim Eun-Hye said, adding President Lee Myung-Bak had ordered maximum efforts to rescue the crewmen.
"Finding the truth (behind the incident) is important, but saving our sailors is more important," the president was quoted as saying.
Another emergency meeting was to be held Saturday morning.
A government source quoted by Yonhap news agency said officials were investigating various possible causes: an attack by a North Korean torpedo boat, a mine laid by North Korea or an explosion of munitions aboard the ship.
YTN television, quoting an unidentified presidential official, said the ship was well south of the border and North Korean ships were unlikely to be in the area.
A military source told the agency the Cheonan was holed in the stern near its propeller.
The JCS said there were no abnormal military movements on the North Korean side of the disputed maritime border, which was the scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002.
Last November the navies of the two sides exchanged fire in the area. Seoul's officials said a North Korean patrol boat had retreated in flames but its casualties were unknown. No South Koreans were hurt.
The North refuses to accept the maritime border known as the Northern Limit Line, which was drawn up by United Nations forces after the 1950-53 Korean war. It says the line should run further to the south.
In January the North fired 370 artillery shells into the sea near the border, raising tensions between the two sides.
Source: DTN News / AFP
(NSI News Source Info) SEOUL, South Korean - March 27, 2010: A South Korean navy ship with 104 people on board sank near the North Korean border Friday after an unexpl
ained explosion, military officials said, and a news report said several sailors were killed.
South Korea's government called an emergency security meeting but a presidential spokeswoman said it was still unclear whether the sinking resulted from a clash with North Korea.
Another South Korean naval vessel had opened fire on an unidentified object but it was later found to be a flock of birds, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
The Cheonan, a 1,200-ton corvette, sank late in the evening near Baengnyeong island in the Yellow Sea, which lies between the Korean peninsula and China.
Media reports said six naval ships, two coastguard vessels and four other craft were involved in a rescue operation.
A JCS spokesman said 58 crew members had so far been rescued but had no details on any fatalities.
Yonhap news agency quoted naval officials as saying several bodies were retrieved but gave no exact figure. Seven crewmen were airlifted to hospital.
"For now, it is not certain whether North Korea is related" to the incident, presidential spokeswoman Kim Eun-Hye said, adding President Lee Myung-Bak had ordered maximum efforts to rescue the crewmen.
"Finding the truth (behind the incident) is important, but saving our sailors is more important," the president was quoted as saying.
Another emergency meeting was to be held Saturday morning.
A government source quoted by Yonhap news agency said officials were investigating various possible causes: an attack by a North Korean torpedo boat, a mine laid by North Korea or an explosion of munitions aboard the ship.
YTN television, quoting an unidentified presidential official, said the ship was well south of the border and North Korean ships were unlikely to be in the area.
A military source told the agency the Cheonan was holed in the stern near its propeller.
The JCS said there were no abnormal military movements on the North Korean side of the disputed maritime border, which was the scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002.
Last November the navies of the two sides exchanged fire in the area. Seoul's officials said a North Korean patrol boat had retreated in flames but its casualties were unknown. No South Koreans were hurt.
The North refuses to accept the maritime border known as the Northern Limit Line, which was drawn up by United Nations forces after the 1950-53 Korean war. It says the line should run further to the south.
In January the North fired 370 artillery shells into the sea near the border, raising tensions between the two sides.
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