North and South Korea exchange artillery fire, two killed
Top story: North Korean artillery rounds struck the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong, killing two South Korean soldiers, wounding another 15 soldiers and three civilians. South Korean artillery batteries returned fire and its military went into "crisis status" following the attack.
The incident occurred after a South Korean artillery unit fired test shots near the North Korean coast, though South Korean officials insisted that the shots did not cross the sea border between the two countries.
The attack took place as 70,000 South Korean troops began an annual military drill, which had been condemned by the North as provocative. It also came in the wake of revelations that North Korea had constructed a new, sophisticated uranium enrichment facility, which raised fears that Pyongyang was planning to build more powerful nuclear weapon.
Analysts suggested that the recent escalation of tensions was North Korea's way of getting the United States to return to negotiations on its terms, and also to provide the impoverished country with much-needed food aid.
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