Questions remain over when NK mines were planted in DMZ

Investigators said an active North Korean anti-personnel mine was found south of the Military Demarcation Line during a joint probe into the Sept. 21 DMZ explosions, and the United Nations Command said an Armistice Agreement violation occurred. South Korea’s military said the evidence suggests the mines were buried rather than washed in, but it still has not determined when they were planted or whether they were meant to target South Korean troops. North Korea rejected the findings and called the incident a staged farce.

Forensic analysis of the injured soldiers’ helmets and body armor detected TNT and brown foreign material but no steel fragments, which South Korea said supported the view that the exploded mines were not South Korean. The South Korean military said its mines typically scatter steel fragments and have a lethal radius of more than 20 meters.

Investigators found a North Korean resin anti-personnel mine 5 to 10 centimeters underground about a meter from the first blast site, and later found another unexploded North Korean resin mine nearby.

The military believes at least four mines were present around the site, including the two that exploded and the two that were found or spotted during the investigation and withdrawal.

Officials said the soil and roots around the mine suggested it may have been there for more than a year, and they also detected terrain changes in September 2025 about 10 meters from the blast site that they believed could indicate North Korean mine-laying.

Published Sep 30, 2026 4:00 pm KST

Updated Sep 30, 2026 4:08 pm KST

Investigators examine mine characteristics, possible link to border fortification

A land mine warning sign is seen in a civilian-controlled area near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province, Wednesday. South Korea’s military and the United Nations Command said the same day that a violation of the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement had occurred in connection with the recent land mine explosions in the DMZ. Yonhap

A North Korean resin anti-personnel mine found during the third day of an on-site investigation into the recent land mine explosions in the DMZ is seen in this photo released by the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), Tuesday. Courtesy of JCS

More than a week after two land mines exploded in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), injuring three South Korean soldiers, investigators are getting a clearer picture of what caused the blasts, though questions remain over when and why the mines were planted.

The United Nations Command said Wednesday that an active North Korean anti-personnel mine was found south of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) during a joint investigation into the Sept. 21 DMZ explosions, determining that a violation of the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement had occurred.

South Korea's military believes the mines were buried rather than washed into the area but has yet to determine when they were planted or whether they were intended to target South Korean troops.

The intact mine recovered during the investigation was a North Korean resin anti-personnel mine, a box-shaped device similar to the North’s wooden-box mine but made of plastic. The JCS says North Korea has used this type since 1969.

Forensic analysis of the injured soldiers’ helmets and body armor detected TNT and brown foreign material but no steel fragments, supporting the assessment that the exploded mines were not South Korean. South Korean mines typically scatter steel fragments and have a lethal radius of more than 20 meters, according to the JCS.

An engineer also spotted a brown, smooth, rectangular plastic object 5 to 10 centimeters underground about a meter from the first blast site. After being shown a photograph from a North Korean military manual, the soldier said it looked “very similar” to the mine pictured.

Investigators later discovered another unexploded North Korean resin mine nearby. Together with the two mines that exploded and the one sighted during the soldiers’ withdrawal, the military believes at least four mines were present around the site.

The depth at which the unexploded mine was found has strengthened the military’s assessment that it was buried rather than carried into the area by rain or flooding. Officials have cautioned, however, that the two mines that exploded were destroyed, making it difficult to determine how they had been positioned.

When they were planted

It remains unclear when they were planted. Military officials have said the condition of the soil and roots around the mine suggested it may have been there for more than a year. About 10 meters from the blast site, the military also detected terrain changes in September 2025 that it believed were signs of North Korean mine-laying.

The site is only about 10 meters south of the MDL. Military officials have noted that MDL markers are not continuous and that perceptions of the precise boundary can differ in some areas. They have not ruled out the possibility that North Korea regarded the location as being on its side.

Pyongyang's response

North Korea has rejected the findings. Kim Yo-jong, sister of leader Kim Jong-un, called the incident an "obvious self-staged farce" and claimed North Korean soldiers had "never once crossed the border." She defended the North's border fortification as an exercise of sovereignty and warned of retaliation if South Korean forces opened fire on its troops.

Hong Min, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said Kim’s response appeared focused less on the mine itself than on preventing South Korean countermeasures from disrupting North Korea’s border fortification work.

“North Korea appears more concerned about the possibility of live fire against personnel involved in its border fortification work than about responsibility for the mine explosion itself,” Hong said.

He also noted that Kim set actual live fire, rather than warning shots, as the threshold for retaliation.

“Setting live fire as the threshold for retaliation can also be seen as a signal of escalation management, suggesting that measures below that level may not necessarily trigger a military response,” Hong said.

调查人员称，在对9月21日非军事区爆炸事件进行联合调查期间，在军事分界线以南发现了一枚朝鲜埋设的杀伤人员地雷。联合国军司令部表示，此次爆炸事件违反了停战协定。韩国军方称，证据表明这些地雷是被埋设的，而非被冲入的，但尚未确定地雷的埋设时间，也未确定其是否旨在袭击韩国军队。朝鲜否认了调查结果，并称此次事件是一场精心策划的闹剧。

对受伤士兵头盔和防弹衣的法医分析检测到了TNT炸药和棕色异物，但没有发现钢片。韩国方面表示，这支持了爆炸地雷并非韩国制造的观点。韩国军方称，其地雷通常会散布钢片，致命半径超过20米。

调查人员在距离第一个爆炸地点约一米的地下 5 至 10 厘米处发现了一枚朝鲜制造的树脂杀伤人员地雷，后来又在附近发现了另一枚未爆炸的朝鲜制造的树脂地雷。

军方认为现场附近至少有四枚地雷，其中包括爆炸的两枚和在调查和撤离过程中发现或发现的两枚。

官员们表示，地雷周围的土壤和根系表明该地雷可能已经存在一年多了，他们还在 2025 年 9 月探测到距离爆炸地点约 10 米的地形变化，他们认为这可能表明朝鲜埋设了地雷。

发布于2026年9月30日下午4:00（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年9月30日下午4:08（韩国标准时间）

调查人员检查地雷特征，以及其与边境防御工事的可能联系

周三，在京畿道涟川市非军事区附近的一处平民控制区内，可以看到地雷警告标志。韩国军方和联合国军司令部当天表示，近期非军事区发生的地雷爆炸事件违反了1953年《朝鲜停战协定》。韩联社

这张照片由美国联合参谋本部（JCS）周二发布，照片显示的是在对近期非军事区地雷爆炸事件进行现场调查的第三天发现的一枚朝鲜制造的树脂杀伤人员地雷。照片由联合参谋本部提供。

在两枚地雷在非军事区 (DMZ) 爆炸，造成三名韩国士兵受伤一周多后，调查人员对爆炸原因有了更清晰的了解，但关于地雷何时以及为何埋设的疑问仍然存在。

联合国军司令部周三表示，在对9月21日非军事区爆炸事件进行联合调查期间，在军事分界线（MDL）以南发现了一枚朝鲜现役反步兵地雷，认定发生了违反1953年《朝鲜停战协定》的行为。

韩国军方认为这些地雷是埋设的，而不是被冲入该地区的，但尚未确定地雷的埋设时间，也未确定其是否意在针对韩国军队。

调查中回收的完整地雷是一枚朝鲜产树脂杀伤人员地雷，外形呈盒状，与朝鲜的木盒地雷类似，但材质为塑料。联合参谋本部称，朝鲜自1969年以来一直在使用这种地雷。

对受伤士兵头盔和防弹衣的法医分析检测到了TNT炸药和棕色异物，但未发现钢片，这证实了爆炸地雷并非韩国制造的结论。据联合参谋本部称，韩国地雷通常会散布钢片，致命半径超过20米。

一名工程师还在距离第一次爆炸点约一米处地下5到10厘米处发现了一个棕色、光滑的矩形塑料物体。在被出示一张朝鲜军方手册上的照片后，这名士兵表示，这个物体看起来与照片中的地雷“非常相似”。

调查人员随后在附近发现了一枚未爆炸的朝鲜树脂地雷。加上爆炸的两枚地雷和士兵撤退时发现的一枚，军方认为现场附近至少有四枚地雷。

未爆炸地雷的发现深度进一步证实了军方的评估，即该地雷是被掩埋的，而非被雨水或洪水冲入该区域。然而，官员们也提醒说，两枚爆炸的地雷已被摧毁，因此难以确定它们最初的埋设位置。

它们被栽种的时候

目前尚不清楚这些地雷是什么时候埋设的。军方官员表示，地雷周围土壤和根系的状况表明，地雷可能已经存在一年以上。在距离爆炸点约10米的地方，军方还在2025年9月探测到地形变化，他们认为这是朝鲜布雷的迹象。

该地点位于军事分界线以南约10米处。军方官员指出，军事分界线标志并非连续，而且在某些地区，人们对确切边界的认知可能存在差异。他们并未排除朝鲜将该地点视为其领土的可能性。

平壤的回应

朝鲜否认了调查结果。朝鲜领导人金正恩的妹妹金与正称此次事件是“一场显而易见的自导自演的闹剧”，并声称朝鲜士兵“从未越过边境”。她辩称朝鲜的边境防御工事是行使主权的行为，并警告说，如果韩国军队向其部队开火，朝鲜将予以报复。

韩国统一研究院高级研究员洪敏表示，金正恩的回应似乎与其说是针对地雷本身，不如说是防止韩国的反制措施干扰朝鲜的边境防御工作。

洪说：“朝鲜似乎更关心参与边境防御工事工作的人员可能遭到实弹射击，而不是关心地雷爆炸本身的责任。”

他还指出，金正恩以实弹射击（而非鸣枪示警）作为报复的门槛。

洪表示：“以实弹射击作为报复的门槛，也可以被视为升级管理的一种信号，表明低于这一级别的措施可能不一定会引发军事回应。”