South Korea's unification chief aborts European tour after DMZ mine blast blamed on North Korea

South Korea's Unification Minister Chung Dong-young was due to travel to Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Germany to examine peace-building practices, but he has ended the trip early and will fly back on Wednesday. The change comes after the Joint Chiefs of Staff said it is highly likely that North Korea planted a land mine that exploded on Sept. 21 in the Demilitarized Zone, wounding three South Korean soldiers.

The Ministry of Unification confirmed Chung will skip the Ireland and Germany visits to focus on the incident. Seoul has called the blast a violation of the 1950-53 Armistice and demanded an apology from Pyongyang. North Korean officials have rejected the accusation, labeling it a groundless conspiracy. The U.N. Command overseeing the border also classified the explosion as an armistice breach.