South Korean authorities have arrested six American nationals who were allegedly attempting to send plastic bottles packed with rice, Bibles, and U.S. currency across the maritime border into North Korea. The arrests took place in the early hours of Thursday, June 26, near Ganghwa Island, a border region northwest of Seoul, according to local police. The suspects, aged between their 20s and 50s, were apprehended at 1:03 a.m. while trying to launch thousands of plastic bottles into the sea. We have arrested and are questioning six American nationals in their 20s to 50s on suspicion of violating the Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety, the head of the investigation team at Ganghwa police station in Incheon told AFP. The Americans could not speak Korean, so an interpreter was provided for them and we have since started the questioning. Ganghwa Island, located less than 10 kilometres from North Korea's maritime border, has long been used by non-profit groups and anti-Pyongyang activists as a launch site for items intended to reach the North. These often include rice, dollar bills, USB sticks containing South Korean dramas and K-pop music, and religious materials such as Bibles. In November, the South Korean government designated Ganghwa and other border zones as danger areas, warning that such activities could be seen by North Korea as provocative and destabilising. The policy shift came amid escalating tensions between the two countries, which engaged in a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign last year. During that period, North Korea launched thousands of trash-filled balloons into the South, claiming they were in retaliation for propaganda materials sent across the border by South Korean activists. In response, Seoul reactivated border loudspeakers to broadcast K-pop music and international news. North Korea countered by transmitting eerie sounds along the frontier, causing significant disturbances to residents in nearby areas. South Koreas new president, Lee Jae Myung, who assumed office this month, has promised a more conciliatory stance toward North Korea. He halted the border broadcasts, a move that prompted Pyongyang to stop its own transmissions the following day.
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