The reported military buildup Thursday came after the North Korean decision to expel South Koreans from a joint factory park.
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The government official said it will complete bringing South Koreans at the complex home Thursday.
According to an official from the South’s Ministry of Unification, a total of 248 South Koreans – workers from 124 companies and officials of the management committee of the complex – were in the park as of Thursday afternoon.
The administration of South Korean President Park Geun-hye announced Wednesday that it would suspend operations at the Kaesong industrial complex, thereby playing one of the few remaining cards at its disposal to heighten pressure on North Korea.
There is increased tension on the Korean peninsula following a rocket launch last Sunday and fourth nuclear test by North Korea last month.
This move by South Korea is a big blow to the North as 110 million U.S. dollars was generated in wages and fees for the country past year. Such over-the-top rhetoric is typical of the North’s propaganda, but the country appeared to be backing up its language with its strong response.
The North has called the shutdown “a declaration of war” and has designated Kaesong as a military zone.
The clip also features the North Korean despot Kim Jong-un glancing heavenward his stock trim perched precariously on his head.
The rare cross-border project, which began during an era of relatively good relations between the Koreas, combined cheap North Korean labor with the capital and technology of wealthy South Korea. Seoul said the North was using its investment “to fund its nuclear and missile development”.
Dozens of South Korean trucks also returned across the border, according to Reuters.
“It would be a lie to say I’m not anxious about my personal safety”, said Yoon Sang-Young, who has worked in the same textiles factory in Kaesong for eight years.
Earlier in the day, the United States signaled its own unilateral moves against North Korea, with the US Senate unanimously adopting a bill expanding existing sanctions.
Halting work at the jointly operated facility is aimed at tightening the net around North Korea in cooperation with Japan and the United States.
The question among some is, why now? North Korea tested what it said was a hydrogen bomb on January 6 and on Sunday launched a rocket, putting a satellite into orbit.
The South Korean government might have to provide financial compensation to companies that used the complex, so the decision to shut Kaesong also comes at a significant cost to the South.
Discussions were continuing at the U.N. Security Council to impose new sanctions, a White House official said.
South Korean amy soldiers walk on Unification Bridge, which leads to the demilitarized zone, near the border village of Panmunjom in Paju, South Korea, Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016.
Jang’s remarks reflected a general sense of outrage among Kaesong’s South Korean business community over the shutdown order.
South Koreans were divided by their government’s decision. “How do we take and ship the products out without enough time?” he asked.
It was the only place to officially allow people from both Koreas to interact and have a glimpse into each other’s lives and sparking the smuggling of South Korean snacks and food.
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In one of its harshest possible punishment options, South Korea on Thursday began work to suspend operations at the factory park.
