N. Korea Sends 240 Trash-Filled Balloons toward S. Korea

North Korea has reportedly sent around 240 balloons filled with garbage toward South Korea, with about 10 of them landing in the South, according to a report released on Sunday by the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The South Korean news agency Yonhap reported that, as of 10 a.m. local time (01:00 GMT), no additional balloons were detected in the air after North Korea launched them on Saturday, according to the South Korean military.

A few of the balloons landed in the northern areas of Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds Seoul.

Despite the winds blowing in the northern and northeastern directions, North Korea still proceeded with the launch.

Earlier in the day, the Gyeonggi Bukbu Provincial Police Agency received two reports regarding the balloons, as reported by the German news agency DPA.

The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed that the balloons contained paper scraps and plastic bottles, with no hazardous materials present.

North Korea resumed its balloon campaign on Saturday for the first time in over two weeks. In July, some of these balloons even landed at the South Korean presidential office complex in Seoul.

Since May 28, North Korea has launched over 3,600 garbage-filled balloons in retaliation against anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent by North Korean defectors in South Korea.

In response to the North's campaign, South Korea has been conducting full-scale anti-Pyongyang broadcasts daily via loudspeakers along the border since mid-July.

North Korea has expressed its dissatisfaction with the loudspeaker broadcasts and the anti-regime leaflets, fearing that the influx of external information could pose a threat to Kim Jong-un's regime.