South Korea Retaliates Against North Korean Artillery Fire

by: Alexys Oakman

Tensions rose on Wednesday, November 23 as North Korea launched a bomb onto South Korean island Yeonpyeong, and South Korea retaliated by sending military fire back onto Northern territory. The rivals have been hostile towards each other for decades.

It is not yet known if there were any casualties in the north­ern territory. No matter the case, the attack has affected interna­tional relationships.

The small island of Yeonpyeong was attacked by North Korean military shells after South Korea had been performing military drills close to North-South mari­time border.

After an attempt to negoti­ate with South Korea to stop the drills, North Korea bombed the small island. It houses military installations and a small civilian population.

The U.S. military, who are allied with South Korea, were outraged to hear what happened. The U.S. military stations 28,000 troops in South Korea, and North Korea putting U.S. troops in harm’s way only worsens rela­tions. General Walter Sharp said on a Facebook posting that the U.S. military is “closely moni­toring the situation and exchang­ing information with our (South Korean) allies as we always do.”

Sophomore Angelica Ditchitang said, “I think this could start a serious problem. These countries have already had a rough past, and now they are just stirring things up again.”