It added that "two officers were urgently evacuated by emergency helicopter, and one officer will be moved by land and then evacuated by helicopter."
The accident occurred at a frontline unit of the Army's 25th Division, which oversees the western front. The officers belonging to the unit were searching the DMZ when they were hit by what is presumed to have been a landmine explosion.
However, it has not been confirmed whether a mine laid by North Korean forces detonated or whether the accident was caused by a South Korean mine.
Some observers suggest the mine may have been buried in the northern section of the DMZ and washed into the southern side after being dislodged by heavy rains.
Since North Korea declared "two hostile states" relations, it has continued measures to sever ties with the South across the DMZ north of the Military Demarcation Line since 2024, including laying landmines, installing anti-tank barriers, reinforcing barbed-wire fences and clearing vegetation. There have been numerous cases of North Korean soldiers being injured by mines they themselves had laid.
