Dozens of North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the heavily fortified border Tuesday but retreated after warning shots were fired, Seoul said, the second such incident in two weeks as Pyongyang reinforces its frontiers with the South.
International News
Seoul Fires Warning Shots As North Korean Soldiers Cross Border Again
Landmine explosions near the border also injured multiple North Korean soldiers, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, adding that Pyongyang had recently deployed troops in the area to clear scrub and lay mines, as relations between the two Koreas plummet.
The countries technically remain at war as the 1950-1953 conflict ended in an armistice, and the Demilitarized Zone dividing the peninsula is already one of the most heavily mined places on earth.
But North Korea is moving to reinforce that, laying more landmines, reinforcing tactical roads and adding what appear to be anti-tank barriers, Seoul’s military said.
The JCS said it believed the Tuesday crossing — like a previous one on June 9 — was accidental, with some 20 to 30 North Korean soldiers carrying work tools involved in the incident, which took place around 8:30 am Tuesday (2330 GMT).
“Dozens of North Korean troops crossed the Military Demarcation Line today… (and) retreated northwards after warning shots” were fired, a JCS official said.
North Korean soldiers tasked with reinforcing the border had suffered “multiple casualties from repeated landmine explosion incidents” but they “appear to be recklessly pressing ahead with the operations,” the official said.
“North Korea’s activities seem to be a measure to strengthen internal control, such as blocking North Korean troops and North Koreans from defecting to the South,” the JCS official said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to visit Pyongyang later Tuesday, sparking concern in Seoul, which has accused the North of shipping arms to Moscow for use in Ukraine in exchange for help with its nascent satellite program.
‘No reconciliation’
“This has rather symbolic significance,” Koh Yu-hwan, North Korean studies emeritus professor at Dongguk University told AFP, saying adding new mines was making it clear Pyongyang did not want dialogue with the South.
“By laying mines, North Korea is demonstrating once again that, as per the instructions of the supreme leader (Kim Jong Un), there will be no reconciliation with the South,” he added.
“North Korea is not laying mines across the entire frontline, but rather in areas that are easily observable by the South. They are also blocking roads and railways that were previously areas of inter-Korean cooperation.”
During a period of warmer ties in 2018, the two Koreas removed landmines along a section of the heavily fortified border in a bid to ease military tensions.
Earlier this month, around 20 North Korean soldiers crossed the military demarcation line between the two countries in a section of the border “overgrown with trees”, according to Seoul’s military, which assessed the incursion to be accidental.
That crossing came as North Korea was sending more than a thousand balloons laden with trash southward — a response, it said, to balloons carrying anti-Pyongyang propaganda sent north by activists.
The South Korean government in turn suspended a 2018 tension-reducing military deal and restarted loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts along the border, infuriating the North, which warned Seoul was creating “a new crisis”.
Ahn Chan-il, a defector-turned-researcher who runs the World Institute for North Korea Studies, told AFP that the North Korean military was trying to survey the border area to install more barriers.
“Engineering and observation units have increased their presence in the area. It is believed that the disorderly actions of those who are unfamiliar with the minefields have led to these mine-related accidents.”
AFP
According to Mundo Deportivo, the Premier League is the top league in terms of player contributions to the 2026 World Cup, sending 162 players to the 48-team tournament.
With the World Cup squad lists finalized, and despite last-minute withdrawals due to injury, such as Belardi from Argentina and Kahr from Germany, it can be concluded that the Premier League is once again leading the world’s major leagues. England’s top flight has solidified its position as the largest source of players for the 48 World Cup teams.
As of June 7th, out of the 1244 confirmed selected players, 13% play in the Premier League, totaling 162 individuals, with 5 clubs contributing at least 10 players each.
Manchester City leads the clubs contributing national team players to the World Cup with 19 players. Following closely among English teams are Arsenal with 16, Manchester United with 12, Crystal Palace with 12, and Liverpool with 11. The English top flight has once again proven its representation in football, and this advantage is now reflected on the World Cup stage.
Although there is a gap with the Premier League, the Bundesliga is still the second-highest contributor of players to the upcoming World Cup in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. Specifically, 100 participating players currently play in the Bundesliga, with Bayern Munich being the largest contributor from the Bundesliga, with 17 players selected. Borussia Dortmund contributed 11 players. In recent years, the Bundesliga’s global influence has continuously increased, with Hoffenheim having 9 World Cup players and Eintracht Frankfurt having 8.
Without Barcelona, La Liga’s presence would be much smaller. Including Gündoğan, Barcelona will have 16 players participating in the World Cup, making it one of the clubs contributing the most players to this World Cup. La Liga has a total of 81 players selected, only half that of the Premier League. After Barcelona, Atlético Madrid is the Spanish club with the most players contributed, with 12, surpassing Real Madrid’s 10, as Real Madrid also suffers from the impact of a poor season performance.
Ligue 1 has a total of 78 players participating in the World Cup, with Paris Saint-Germain accounting for a large proportion. Among these 78 players, nearly 20% come from this newly crowned European champion, specifically 15 players. Following Paris Saint-Germain among Ligue 1 clubs are Lille and Nice, both with 8 players selected.
Italy once had the best league in the world, and now Serie A contributes 66 players to this most important football event, which is also related to the Italian team missing the World Cup for the third consecutive time. AC Milan, which finished fifth in Serie A, is the Italian club with the most World Cup players, with 10.
Another data point that demonstrates the strength of English football is that the EFL Championship, England’s second-tier league after the Premier League, has 36 players participating in the World Cup, which is more than the total of other major European second-tier leagues, such as the 2. Bundesliga with 6, Ligue 2 with 6, Serie B with 5, and Segunda División with 5. In fact, the Championship is among the top ten leagues contributing the most World Cup players, even higher than the Brazilian and Dutch leagues.
June 5th, Transfermarkt updated. The new market values of Barcelona players. Three players increased and nine decreased, with Raphinha dropping by 10 million to 70 million euros.
Increase (Euros)
Joan-Garcia increased by 5 million to 45 million
Eric-Garcia increased by 5 million to 40 million
Gerard-Martin increased by 10 million to 35 million
Decrease (Euros)
Raphinha decreased by 10 million to 70 million
Kounde decreased by 5 million to 60 million
Balde decreased by 5 million to 50 million
De Jong decreased by 10 million to 35 million
Casado decreased by 2 million to 18 million
Christensen decreased by 1 million to 8 million
Cancelo decreased by 1 million to 8 million
Lewandowski decreased by 1 million to 7 million
Szczesny decreased by 100,000 to 800,000
Unchanged (Euros)
Yamal 200 million
Pedri 150 million
Fermin 100 million
Cubarsi 80 million
Olmo 60 million
Ferran Torres 50 million
Rashford 40 million
Gavi 30 million
Bernal 30 million
Araujo 20 million
Bardghji 15 million
Bitcoin dropped below $60,000 on Friday, its lowest level since October 2024, just before Donald Trump’s election which propelled it to a record high.
The currency fell by about 6 percent around 1615 GMT, to $59.7709, before paring its losses slightly.
The election of Trump, a staunch advocate of cryptocurrencies, to the White House in November 2024 for a second term sparked a wave of enthusiasm in the sector, sending the price of bitcoin soaring to nearly $110,000.
AFP
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