N. Korea appears to halt broadcasts of loud noises toward S. Korea
A loudspeaker for anti-South Korea broadcasts is seen operating in the North Korean border city of Kaesong, North Hwanghae Province, as viewed from Odusan Observatory in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, Oct. 30, 2024. Korea Times photo by Lee Han-oh
North Korea appears to have paused its broadcasts of loud noises toward South Korea on Thursday, the South's military said, a day after Seoul suspended its yearlong anti-Pyongyang broadcasts along the border.
"There were no areas where North Korea's loudspeaker broadcasts were detected Thursday," the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said, adding it is closely monitoring related movements in North Korea.
The North's broadcasts of loud noises were last heard in the western border area late Wednesday night, a military official said on condition of anonymity.
On Wednesday, President Lee Jae-myung ordered the suspension of loudspeaker broadcasts targeting North Korea in a move aimed at easing tensions and rebuilding trust.
The presidential office also cited the need to ease the suffering of border area residents who have been severely affected by the noise involving the sounds of sirens and traditional drums.
Upon Lee's order, the military has halted its loudspeaker broadcasts in the border areas since 2 p.m. Wednesday.
The suspension came a year after the military resumed the campaign for the first time in six years in June last year, under the former Yoon Suk Yeol government, in response to the North's repeated launch of trash-carrying balloons across the border.
Meanwhile, the North appears to have shifted its broadcasts of loud noises to music in the western border county of Gangwha.
The municipality said it will step up monitoring of the North's loudspeaker broadcasts to see whether such a change continues.