South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff issued an official statement earlier this evening calling North Korea’s attack on Yonpyeong Island a deliberate attack in clear violation of the UN Charter, Korean War Armistice Agreement and North-South Joint Agreement on Reconciliation, Nonaggression, and Cooperation and Exchange.
General Lee Hong Ki, director of operations of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, released the statement on the North Korean attack to the media in a press conference, emphasizing that, “This was inhumane brutality, even attacking civilians indiscriminately.”
General Lee asserted, “The South Korean military will deal firmly with the attack in order to protect the Northern Limit Line and our territory.”
According to the statement, the North’s attack began at 2:34 P.M. with tens of coastal artillery rounds, forcing the South to return fire with around 80 rounds at 2:47 P.M., exercising the right to self-defense. Therefore, General Lee reported, “There might have been significant damage on the North Korean side due to our counter-attack against the origin of the attack.”
He also specified the latest damage: two South Korean marines dead and sixteen injured, six serious and ten minor, and three injured civilians.
