1996 Gangneung submarine infiltration incident

Naval incident between North Korea and South Korea mil Infiltration of Gangneung 1996 NK sub.jpg 300px The Sang-O-class submarine stranded on the South Korean coast 17 September 1996 – 5 November 1996 Gangneung, Gangwon Province, South Korea South Korea 1949 North Korea 1992 South Korean victory 43,000 personnel 1 Sang-O submarine26 personnel 13 killed 8 killed in action 4 in accidents 1 off-duty soldier murdered 27 wounded 24 killed 11 executed by own men 13 killed in action 1 captured (Lee Kwang-soo)1 missing1 submarine capturedNorth Korea apologizes for submarine intrusion http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9612/29/nkorea/ CNN 8 December 2012 29 December 1996 6 November 2012 https://web.archive.org/web/20121106192242/http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9612/29/nkorea/ dead 3 South Korean civilians killed The 1996 Gangneung submarine infiltration incident began on 18 September 1996 near the South Korean city of Gangneung when North Koreans abandoned their grounded submarine and hid within the city, resulting in a 49-day manhunt for the belligerents.Dies Jr, H. P. (2004). North Korean Special Operations Forces: 1996 Kangnung Submarine Infiltration. Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin, 30(4), 29–34. The incident was one of the more serious instances of North Korean espionage involving the Reconnaissance Bureau (reconnaissance team and 22nd Squadron of the Maritime Department of the Reconnaissance Bureau). In 1996, a Dead North Korean Spy Submarine (Armed with Commandos) Nearly Started a War 13 March 2017 Center for the National Interest https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/1996-dead-north-korean-spy-submarine-armed-commandos-nearly-19750 13 May 2019 13 May 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20190513070620/https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/1996-dead-north-korean-spy-submarine-armed-commandos-nearly-19750 live The raid was launched by North Korean armed spies to assassinate the President of South Korea, Kim Young-sam, during his visit to Chunchon, on 5 October 1996. Months after the start of the incident North Korea issued a rare apology for the events and ensuing loss of life.Smith Donald C. 1989 The rhetoric of the weekly compilation of presidential documents http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0277-9390(89)90054-x Government Publications Review 16 3 213–217 10.1016/0277-9390(89)90054-x 0277-9390 subscription Landing On 15 September 1996, a North Korean Sang-O submarine landed a three-person special operations reconnaissance team on the east coast of South Korea near Jeongdongjin, 20 km mile south-east of Gangneung, Kangwon Province. Their mission was to spy on the naval installations in the area and then return. However, the larger mission was the assassination of South Korean President Kim Young-sam.https://www.sisajournal.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=81968 ko:생포간첩 이광수 "침투 목적은 대통령 암살"/Live captured Lee Kwang-soo, "mission was to assassinate the President" Lee Jung-hoon Sisa Journal 1996-10-17 2022-05-11 2022-08-07 https://web.archive.org/web/20220807175218/https://www.sisajournal.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=81968 live The "reconnaissance team" alongside the submarine was to help drop off the "assassination" team, survey government facilities, and return. The "assassination team" was to assassinate president Kim Young-sam at Chunchon, a nearby city.January 2023 President Kim was planning to visit Chuncheon to open a national sports event to be held on 7 October.January 2023 The submarine made a failed attempt to collect the team on the 16th and returned the following day. On the 17th it ran aground in the attempt, and all efforts to free her were unsuccessful. The crew then decided to destroy the sensitive equipment in the submarine by starting a fire inside. They then split up in several groups unnoticed until one group was spotted at around 1:00 a.m. by a taxi driver. Suspicious of their clothing and behavior, the taxi driver alerted the authorities, who quickly mobilized.Ahn J. H. 2017-04-05 The night the North Koreans came ashore: the Gangneung incident, 21 years on https://www.nknews.org/2017/04/the-night-the-north-koreans-came-ashore-the-gangneung-incident-21-years-on/ 2023-01-08 NK News - North Korea News en-US Manhunt The 49-day manhunt, from September 18 to November 5. It resulted in the confirmed deaths of 24 North Korean infiltrators. One infiltrator, Lee Kwang-soo, was captured. Another infiltrator is thought to have escaped across the DMZ. Three civilians and 13 South Korean soldiers (eight KIA and four in accidents) died; 27 soldiers were wounded. In a separate encounter, the commandos strangled a South Korean army private who had set out to collect firewood. The private was believed to have deserted until one of the North Koreans was found wearing his uniform. Of the 25 North Korean infiltrators, one was captured, 11 were killed by the other members for failure in responsibility of running aground of the submarine, and 13 were killed in firefights with the South Korean army. The bodies of the 11 dead commandos were all found on top of a nearby mountain, ten of them lying together in a row wearing white t-shirts and tennis shoes, while the eleventh body was found a short distance away. All of them had been shot in the head at short range. According to the captured member, the crew had been ordered to "commit suicide to avoid capture" after the grounding of their submarine. The infiltrators possessed among their arsenal M16A1 rifles (with accompanying 5.56mm NATO ammunition) and imitation South Korean-style military uniforms.http://imnews.imbc.com/20dbnews/history/1996/2001702_13448.html MBC News A Weapon Displayed From North Korea Special Forces and their Submarine 25 September 1996 https://web.archive.org/web/20160101074135/http://imnews.imbc.com/20dbnews/history/1996/2001702_13448.html 1 January 2016http://bemil.chosun.com/nbrd/gallery/view.html?b_bbs_id=10044&pn=1&num=177361 Yu Yong-won's Military World, Chosun Ilbo Equipment of North Korean Special Forces and Espionage 16 April 2013 https://web.archive.org/web/20221130072147/https://bemil.chosun.com/nbrd/gallery/view.html?b_bbs_id=10044&pn=1&num=177361 30 November 2022 Nestlé Crunch chocolate bars were also recovered.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAgNzmFgn2A https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211220/MAgNzmFgn2A 2021-12-20 live SOUTH KOREA: SUBMARINE INVESTIGATION 7 January 2019 YouTube Some of the dead spies' corpses were displayed to the media;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nW4r9rbthqY https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211220/nW4r9rbthqY 2021-12-20 live SOUTH KOREA: GUN BATTLES FOLLOW NORTH KOREAN INFILTRATION ATTEMPT 7 January 2019 YouTube some were wearing South Korean-style military uniforms as disguises. Though the last infiltrator has never been found, officials announced the end of the manhunt on November 5, believing the commando to have either escaped across the border or died.South Korean Manhunt Missed a Video Parlor https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/08/world/south-korean-manhunt-missed-a-video-parlor.html The New York Times 8 November 1996 https://web.archive.org/web/20230925185302/https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/08/world/south-korean-manhunt-missed-a-video-parlor.html 25 September 2023 Timeline of belligerent casualties 18 September, 16:40 – 1 captured by local policemen 18 September, 17:00 – 11 bodies of executed submarine crew members were found 19 September, 10:00 – 3 killed by South Korean army commandos 19 September, 14:00 – 3 killed by South Korean army special forces 19 September, 16:00 – 1 killed by the South Korean army 21 September, 20:00 – 1 killed by the South Korean army 22 September, 06:00 – 1 killed by the South Korean army 28 September, 06:30 – 1 killed by the South Korean army 30 September, 16:00 – 1 killed by South Korean special forces 5 November, 10:00 – 2 killed by South Korean special forces Evidence of activity inside South Korea Amidst the manhunt, at least two of the North Korean infiltrators spent a night playing video games at a nearby ski resort according to their diaries and rolls of film left behind. The resort is located about 18 miles away from where their submarine ran aground. Film rolls showed pictures taken of a variety of South Korean military installations around. The diary further tells of how the pair lived for two weeks in a shelter they dug in the side of a mountain before making the push north to the border. In all they claim to have travelled some 80 total miles during the manhunt.https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/1996-dead-north-korean-spy-submarine-armed-commandos-nearly-19750 In 1996, a Dead North Korean Spy Submarine (Armed with Commandos) Nearly Started a War 13 March 2017 13 May 2019 13 May 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20190513070620/https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/1996-dead-north-korean-spy-submarine-armed-commandos-nearly-19750 live On their way north they stabbed to death three civilian hikers who were out picking mushrooms when they stumbled upon the North Korean camp. The bodies of the hikers were discovered soon after.Parmar Sunil 2021-09-30 INCIDENT AT KANGNUNG https://archive.navalsubleague.org/1997/incident-at-kangung-cdr-belke 2026-07-04 NSL Archive en-US Responses South Korean officials from both the governing party and opposition party, as well as major newspapers criticized the military for failing to detect the submarine. South Korea: President Kim Young-sam considered the incident to be a significant provocation and announced that any further actions could lead to war. South Korea: Kwon Young-hae, director of the National Intelligence Service, called it an "armed provocation perpetrated to carry out guerrilla warfare."By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF 1996, North Korea Infiltrators Still Elude Search: Anger over both the incursion and the South Korean Army's conduct, New York, N.Y. North Korea: On December 29 an apology was issued by North Korea for the incident and the loss of life. United Nations: On October 15 the UN Security Council officially rebuked North Korea for its actions.By The New, Y. T. (1996, Oct 16). China Joins Criticism Of North Korea Sub. New York Times China joined in after careful scrutiny of the wording. The statement was the first time the UNSC addressed the Korean Peninsula since the end of the Korean war in 1953. Aftermath thumb|right|The Sang-O class submarine on display (2012) The Sang-O class submarine was salvaged and remains on display at Tongil (Unification) Park near Gangneung. North Korea was at first reluctant to take responsibility, claiming that the submarine had suffered an engine failure and had drifted aground.Parmar Sunil 2021-09-30 INCIDENT AT KANGNUNG https://archive.navalsubleague.org/1997/incident-at-kangung-cdr-belke 2026-07-04 NSL Archive en-US By 29 December, however, the North issued an official statement expressing "deep regret" over the submarine incident. In reciprocity, the South Korean government returned the cremated remains of the soldiers to the North via Panmunjom the very next day, the first event of its kind between the neighboring countries.Roblin Sebastien 2017-03-13 In 1996, a Dead North Korean Spy Submarine (Armed with Commandos) Nearly Started a War https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/1996-dead-north-korean-spy-submarine-armed-commandos-nearly-19750 2023-01-09 The National Interest en 2023-02-08 https://web.archive.org/web/20230208174342/https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/1996-dead-north-korean-spy-submarine-armed-commandos-nearly-19750 live Some analysts suspected that the motivation behind the assassination of Choe Deok-geun, South Korean consul for the Russian Far East, was North Korean retaliation for the loss of their men.North Korea denies murdering diplomat 1996-10-04 http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9610/04/korea.consul/index.html CNN 2007-06-01 2007-06-05 https://web.archive.org/web/20070605033100/http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9610/04/korea.consul/index.html live Jeong Hoe-sang ko:최덕근 영사, 러시아 마피아가 살해했다?/Consul Choe Deok-geun, killed by the Russian Mafia? 1996-10-17 http://www.sisapress.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=4231 Sisa Journal 2007-06-01 2007-09-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20070927031912/http://www.sisapress.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=4231 live Bertil Lintner Blood Brothers: Crime, Business, and Politics in Asia Allen and Unwin 2002 1-86508-419-0 213–214 Lee Kwang-soo, the only captured North Korean, remained in South Korea and in 2007 it was reported that he had become an instructor for the South Korean navy.http://news.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2007/05/25/2007052500966.html In 2010 Lee Kwang-soo was interviewed once more for his perspective on that year's sinking of ROKS Cheonan.Hyun Shin Joo 2010-06-01 North Korean Submarine Helmsman Breaks 14-Year Silence https://www.dailynk.com/english/north-korean-submarine-helmsman-br/ 2026-07-18 North Korea News — Daily NK Latest DPRK Updates 2026 en-US See also 1998 Sokcho submarine incident 1998 Yosu submersible incident Fushin-sen References Bibliography Harry P. Dies Jr.: North Korean Special Operations Forces: 1996 Kangnung submarine infiltration, Military Intelligence Professional Bulletin, Oct-Dec 2004. External links Pictures and information regarding the display. https://web.archive.org/web/20100213053629/http://rokdrop.com/2009/01/14/nk-spy-submarine-incident-in-gangneung/ 2010-02-13 The story and pictures of the North-Korean submarine near Jeongdongjin 37.718680 N 129.004508 E type:landmark_source:hewiki title Category:Espionage scandals and incidents Category:Maritime incidents in 1996 Category:Korean People's Navy Category:1996 conflicts Category:1996 in South Korea Category:1996 in North Korea Category:Gangneung Category:Maritime incidents in South Korea Category:North Korea–South Korea relations Category:Mass shootings in Asia Category:South Korean military scandals Category:September 1996 in Asia Category:October 1996 in Asia Category:November 1996 in Asia Category:Mass shootings in South Korea