North Korea threatens to turn South Korea ‘into piles of ashes’ after drones fly over Pyongyang

North Korea said its military was on standby to unleash “firepower” after South Korea allegedly flew drones into Pyongyang .

The North Korean defence ministry warned on Monday that “war may break out any moment” on the Korean peninsula after accusing the South Korean military of launching a “series of drone infiltrations” l ast week that it considered “a military attack”.

The stark warning came after the country’s foreign ministry claimed on Friday that South Korean drones carrying propaganda leaflets had flown over Pyongyang three times this month. The drones carrying leaflets filled with “inflammatory rumours and rubbish” were flown over the capital on 3, 9 and 10 October, it added.

The South Korean defence minister initially denied Pyongyang’s claim but the Joint Chiefs of Staff later said that they “cannot confirm whether the North Korean allegations are true or not”.

In a separate statement published by state media on Sunday, North Korea said the military had issued a preliminary operation order to the artillery to take on an “important firepower task to get fully ready to open fire”.

The drone infiltrations were a “powerful attack” and South Korea “might turn into piles of ashes” for launching it, the defence ministry in Pyongyang said.

The South had taken an “ambiguous stand without denying or acknowledging the current situation”, the ministry said, and it would not accept “excuses that the drone provocation was committed by a civilian organisation”.

It argued that even if the drones were assumed to have been flown by North Korean defectors or activists living in South Korea, it would ask how the South’s military failed to intercept the launch. “Can it be understood that its military and police, which it claims to have put on high alert’, failed to notice civilian organisations flying drones across the border using a launcher or a runway?” the ministry asked.

“We have already judged that the military of the ROK is behind a series of drone infiltrations,” it said, referring to South Korea by its official name, Republic of Korea.

It was unclear what type of drones were flown into the North. Pyongyang only said they required special launchers or runways to launch.

This is the first time North Korea has accused its rival of flying drones to drop propaganda leaflets into the country. The two sides have frequently accused each other of flying balloons filled with trash and leaflets into each other’s territory throughout the year.

Tensions on the Korean peninsula have risen as the South has strengthened military ties with the US and conducted multiple drills with the American military.