'Examining exact cause': South Korean soldier found dead near North Korea border amid rising tensions

A South Korean army staff sergeant died after sustaining external injuries at a frontline military unit in Cheorwon, near the border with North Korea, on Monday morning, the country's Defence Ministry said.Military and civilian investigators are examining the cause and circumstances of his death, the ministry said, Reuters reports.It was not immediately clear whether the sergeant's death was connected to the border tensions.The incident comes after three South Korean soldiers were wounded in landmine explosions south of the Military Demarcation Line on September 21. The blasts had added to tensions between the two Koreas, which remain technically at war as they have never signed a peace treaty following the 1950-53 Korean War.South Korea's military has accused North Korea of laying the mines as part of efforts to fortify the border since 2024. Pyongyang has denied the allegation.The latest incident is likely to draw attention to security conditions along the heavily fortified border, where military activity and occasional incidents have kept tensions between the two neighbours high.You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.