South Korea ‘salvaging debris’ of crashed North Korean military spy satellite

The military also released images of a part of the spy satellite. The images showed a large-barrel-like metal structure with some thin pipes and wires at the bottom, which the military said it salvaged in waters 200 kilometres west of Eocheong Island.

The new "Chollima-1" satellite launch rocket failed because of instability in the engine and fuel system, according to the state news agency KCNA. This flight was North Korea's sixth satellite launch attempt and the first since 2016.

Panic in Seoul after spy satellite launch

Air raid sirens and mobile phone alerts calling for evacuations caused panic among residents of South Korea's capital city of Seoul after North Korea launched its spy satellite. The sirens started at 6.32 am (2132 GMT Tuesday) as the city issued a "Presidential Alert" asking citizens to prepare for a potential evacuation, the news agency Reuters reported.

Shortly after, a second mobile alert came calling for evacuation which remained in place for at least 10 minutes until the administration said it had been sent in error.

Speaking to Reuters, Seoul resident Lee Juyeon said, "I was so panicked. Nine-one-one lines were busy and the internet was slow." Juyeon, who has a nine-month-old child, also said, "So without knowing what was really happening, I was about to head down to a basement wearing a wrap carrier with my baby."

Though residents are used to living in the shadow of threats from North Korea, an element of complacency has crept in among many in the city about the risks and how to respond.

Reuters reported that some office workers in Seoul's central district said they had considered during their commute how to respond to the alarm, such as by withdrawing cash or hoarding water.

"I understand it was a mistake, but even if it has to be simple, that alert message should have said what went on and where to go," Kim Jong-hyun, 48, said on his way to work after dropping off his child at school.

On Wednesday morning, "alerts" and "evacuation" were the most trending topics on Twitter in South Korea.

N. Korea launch violates UN resolutions: Japan

Japan, which briefly activated its missile alert warning system for the Okinawa region after Pyongyang's military spy satellite launch, that such a launch by North Korea violated the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council.

"We cannot tolerate this kind of launch whether it is a satellite or anything else, as it violates UN resolutions," Japan's Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters.

Earlier, the Prime Minister's office tweeted, "Missile launch. Missile launch. North Korea appears to have launched a missile. Please take shelter inside buildings or underground." But half an hour later, the government tweeted that the alert was being cancelled.

"It is expected that the missile reported earlier will not come to Japan. The call for evacuation is lifted," it said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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