KPA Will Never Pardon Gangsterism of S. Korean Military Warmongers: Spokesman

Pyongyang, March 28 (KCNA) -- The spokesman for the General Staff of the Korean People's Army (KPA) gave the following answer to a question raised by KCNA Friday in connection with the fact that a speed boat flotilla belonging to the second fleet of the south Korean navy illegally intruded into the waters of the DPRK side in the West Sea of Korea and forcibly seized a peaceable fishing boat of the DPRK on Thursday night:
    22 HP fishing boat "539-52456" belonging to the Ongjin Fishery Station lost its route due to engine breakdown when it was engaged in regular fishing in the waters near Mahap Islet in Ongjin County on Thursday night.
    As there was thick sea fog, sailors of the boat dropped an anchor and was judging direction with a compass.
    Suddenly unidentified warships appeared and encircled the fishing boat, firing more than 50 bullets.
    Speed boats belonging to the second fleet of the south Korean navy crossed the maritime military demarcation line and intruded into the territorial waters of our side all of a sudden.
    The gangsters stormed the fishing boat that had its engine barely repaired, beat our sailors with iron sticks, making them fall in a faint. Then they shackled and blindfolded the sailors and began taking the boat to Paekryong Island.
    What matters is that the gangsters threw an iron hook at the peaceable boat that went adrift after losing its route and seized the boat by force although its sailors stated that they did not want to surrender.
    Even the Joint Chiefs of Staff of south Korea formally admitted in an official notice sent to the DPRK that the boat was a peaceable fishing boat and normal navigation was not possible due to an engine trouble and that the sailors had no idea of submission.
    However, the gangsters of the south Korean navy separated our sailors and forced submission upon them with guns leveled at them on the island.
    The KPA General Staff sized up the situation and sent an emergency warning notice through the north-south military hotline on the west coast at 22:20 on Thursday, urging the Joint Chiefs of Staff of south Korea to immediately send back the fishing boat and warning that in case the return of the boat is delayed, that will entail unpredictable consequences.
    It, at the same time, took a military countermeasure of immediately dispatching patrol ships of the KPA to the waters where the incident occurred.
    Much upset by this, the group of gangsters belonging to the second fleet of the south Korean navy told lies and made excuses that our fishing boat "illegally crossed the northern limit line" and that they seized the boat because it did not respond to several warnings. It was compelled to hurriedly notify the KPA of the time and place of handover.
    As a result, at 01:28 on Friday, our sailors could come back to the motherland aboard the fishing boat.
    The sailors have not yet come back to their senses but are still in coma due to the shuddering barbaric atrocities committed by the gangsters who forced submission on them.
    The DPRK side will take various measures to prevent abnormal incidents from happening to all fishing boats engaged in fishing in sensitive waters.
    But we will never overlook the inhumane and monstrous atrocities committed by the south Korean military warmongers by forcibly seizing the fishing boat and committing gangster-like crimes against its crew.
    The KPA will certainly force the group of gangsters of the south Korean navy to pay a dear price for their shuddering atrocities. -0-