S. Korea Authorities Deploy Choppers, Troops to Battle Wildfire

A Korea Forest Service helicopter is used to help extinguish a forest fire near its ignition point in Uiseong. YONHAP/AFP
A Korea Forest Service helicopter is used to help extinguish a forest fire near its ignition point in Uiseong. YONHAP/AFP
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S. Korea Authorities Deploy Choppers, Troops to Battle Wildfire

A Korea Forest Service helicopter is used to help extinguish a forest fire near its ignition point in Uiseong. YONHAP/AFP
A Korea Forest Service helicopter is used to help extinguish a forest fire near its ignition point in Uiseong. YONHAP/AFP

South Korean authorities said Monday they would deploy dozens of helicopters and thousands of firefighters and soldiers as they struggle to control multiple wildfires in the southeast, which have been burning for days.

Four people have been killed so far, with officials warning that high winds and rising temperatures were hindering efforts to put out the blazes, AFP reported.

In Uiseong, nearly 7,000 hectares (17,000 acres) of land has been affected and around 600 people evacuated, Lim Sang-seop, head of the Korea Forest Service, told a press briefing.

"A total of 57 wildfire fighting helicopters are to be deployed to extinguish the fire," he said, adding that more than 2,600 fire fighting personnel -- including soldiers -- would be mobilized "to respond with all their might".

The fire had been partly contained but was still burning as of Monday afternoon.

The forest agency has issued "severe" fire warnings, its highest level, in multiple locations, including North and South Gyeongsang provinces, Busan and Daejeon.

A major wildfire claimed four lives over the weekend in Sancheong county, in South Gyeongsang province, about 250 kilometers (155 miles) southeast of Seoul.

That fire was also partly contained by Monday -- but still burning.

The government declared a state of emergency in the affected regions, citing "the extensive damage caused by simultaneous wildfires across the country".

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who was reinstated as acting president earlier Monday, visited the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, urging authorities to work together "until the wildfires are completely extinguished".

"It is a truly heartbreaking incident," he said, adding that he would meet people affected by the fires later Monday.

The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, Lee Jae-myung, urged authorities to "mobilize all means at their disposal to quickly and safely suppress the fires" and take further measures to prevent any additional wildfires.

Other phenomena such as forest fires, droughts, snowstorms and tropical storms can result from a combination of complex factors.



Indian Army Reports 'First Calm Night' after Kashmir Truce with Pakistan Holds

A Pakistani security official stand guard at the scene of a suicide bomb blast targeting a vehicle of police in Peshawar, Pakistan, 11 May 2025. EPA/BILAWAL ARBAB
A Pakistani security official stand guard at the scene of a suicide bomb blast targeting a vehicle of police in Peshawar, Pakistan, 11 May 2025. EPA/BILAWAL ARBAB
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Indian Army Reports 'First Calm Night' after Kashmir Truce with Pakistan Holds

A Pakistani security official stand guard at the scene of a suicide bomb blast targeting a vehicle of police in Peshawar, Pakistan, 11 May 2025. EPA/BILAWAL ARBAB
A Pakistani security official stand guard at the scene of a suicide bomb blast targeting a vehicle of police in Peshawar, Pakistan, 11 May 2025. EPA/BILAWAL ARBAB

The frontier between arch-foes India and Pakistan was peaceful and had the "first calm night in recent days", the Indian army said Monday, after a surprise weekend ceasefire.

The truce was agreed to on Saturday after four days of missile, drone and artillery attacks between the two countries which killed at least 60 people and sent thousands fleeing, reported AFP.

It was the worst violence since the nuclear-armed rivals' last open conflict in 1999 and sent global shudders that it could spiral into full-blown war.

There were initial doubts as the two sides accused each other of breaching the ceasefire just hours after it was unexpectedly announced by US President Donald Trump on social media.

"The night remained largely peaceful across... Kashmir and other areas along the international border," the Indian army said.

"No incidents have been reported, marking the first calm night in recent days," the statement added.

It was also the second straight night without gunfire or shelling at Poonch, the frontier town in the part of divided Kashmir administered by India.

Poonch was one of the worst-hit regions in the latest conflict, with at least 12 residents killed and most of the estimated 60,000 residents fleeing their homes.

On Sunday, people started trickling back to the town, although many still remained worried that the ceasefire would not last.

The alarming spiral towards all-out conflict began before dawn on Wednesday, when India launched missile attacks destroying what it called "terrorist camps" in the Pakistani part of Kashmir.

This followed an April 22 attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians.

India accused Pakistan of backing the attack but Islamabad denied involvement and immediately responded to the strikes with heavy artillery fire.

It claimed to have downed five Indian fighter jets -- something New Delhi has not commented on.

Militants have stepped up operations in Kashmir since 2019, when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist government revoked the region's limited autonomy and took it under direct rule from New Delhi.

Divided Muslim-majority Kashmir is claimed in full by both countries, who have fought several wars over the territory since their independence from Britain in 1947.