North, South Korean troops exchange border fire

SEOUL - North and South Korean troops on Sunday briefly exchanged fire inside the demiltarised zone that traverses the divided peninsula, the South's defence ministry said.

It was the second exchange of fire across the land border this month, after the two rivals traded heavy machine gun rounds on October 10.

There were no reports of any casualties.

A defence ministry official said the incident occurred when a South Korean border patrol spotted North Korean troops approaching close to the Military Demarcation Line that runs through the centre of the DMZ.

"Verbal warnings were issued by loudspeaker and then warning shots were fired," the official said.

"The North Koreans then opened fire on our troops who returned fire," he said, adding that the exchange lasted no longer than 10 minutes.