SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - South Korea says two marines have been killed and 16 others injured in a North Korean bombardment of a South Korean island near the countries' disputed western sea border.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday that it returned fire and scrambled fighter jets in response. It said the "inhumane" attack on civilian areas violated the 1953 armistice halting the Korean War. The two sides technically remain at war because a peace treaty was never negotiated.
The skirmish came amid high tension over North Korea's claim that it has a new uranium enrichment facility, and just six weeks after North Korean leader Kim Jong Il unveiled his youngest son Kim Jong Un as his heir apparent.