Pyongyang has frightened South Koreans with a barrage of balloons carrying trash across the Demilitarized Zone, the heavily fortified border separating the two countries.
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00:00It came from across the heavily fortified demilitarized zone.
00:06This North Korean balloon, carrying a payload of garbage and suspected human waste, landed
00:12in a rural area north of Seoul.
00:15The South Korean army sent biological and chemical weapons teams to inspect it, just
00:21in case.
00:23This is just one of the 200 balloons Pyongyang has sent southward, all carrying trash.
00:30North Korea says it's retaliation for balloons launched by private groups in the South carrying
00:36propaganda leaflets and sometimes forbidden South Korean media on USB sticks.
00:43Kim Jong-un's powerful sister has called the North's balloons gifts for South Koreans,
00:49who she says are, quote, crying for the guarantee for freedom of expression.
00:55These aren't the first balloons to come from the North, or even the first ones carrying
01:00a payload of refuse.
01:02But they still frighten those living near the landing sites, especially as North and
01:07South Korea remain technically at war over 70 years after their separation.
01:19And while the payload does appear to have just been trash, there's anxiety that might
01:37not be the case next time Pyongyang decides on a balloon launch.
02:06In the South Korean capital, Seoul, life goes on as usual.
02:12But the border with the North is only around 50 kilometers away, a fact that Pyongyang
02:17seems determined not to let people here forget.
02:22Chris Ma, John Van Triest, and Bryn Thomas for Taiwan Plus.