N. Korea responsible for damage from trash balloons – Seoul

South Korean Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho said Wednesday that Pyongyang should be held legally accountable for the damage caused by thousands of trash-filled balloons sent across the border by the North, Yonhap News Agency reported. "We should hold North Korea accountable for this issue," Kim was quoted as saying in a parliamentary session after a lawmaker pointed out the government should seek compensation from North Korea for the damage. North Korea has launched thousands of balloons filled with trash since late May in retaliation against anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent across the border by North Korean defectors and activists in South Korea. In July, one of such trash-carrying balloons landed on the presidential office compound. Currently, the law does not provide a legal framework for the government to offer compensation for property damage caused by North Korea's provocations or these trash-filled balloons. On Monday, firefighters put out a blaze that began on the rooftop of a warehouse in Paju, 27 km northwest of Seoul, after a North Korean trash balloon landed there. A Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson has said some North Korean balloons have dropped bundles of trash using devices that heat up and disconnect the garbage after a certain period of time, noting they could lead to fires if they land on surfaces without properly separating. Source: Kuwait News Agency