North Korea fires missile barrage toward the sea as tensions with South rise

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea launched a barrage of ballistic missiles toward its eastern waters Thursday, South Korea’s military said, days after the North threatened to resume front-line propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts and deploy new weapons along the rivals’ tense border.

The launches also followed leader Kim Jong Un’s surprise weekend visit to China, the North's main ally and economic pipeline, to push for greater cooperation.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected about 10 short-range ballistic missiles fired from the North's eastern costal town of Wonsan and that they each flew about 250 kilometers (155 miles). It said South Korea's military maintained its readiness to repel any provocations by North Korea under a solid alliance with the United States.

Japan's Defense Ministry said it detected a suspected ballistic missile launch by North Korea.

Animosity between the Koreas have deepened since last month’s land mine blasts at the border that injured three South Korean soldiers. Seoul accused North Korea of planting mines south of the military demarcation line and demanded it apologize. But Pyongyang has denied responsibility for the explosions and warned of retaliation if provoked.

Last week, North Korea said it would restart propaganda broadcasts and place new weapons systems on alert along the border in protest of what it called repeated warning shots by South Korean troops at border areas. South Korea later proposed talks on clarifying the border to prevent accidental clashes, but North Korea hasn't responded.

During a visit to a South Korean border town earlier this week, Associated Press journalists saw North Korean artillery guns located on the other side of the border, which weren't previously visible.

In recent years, North Korea has been placing more mines, barbed-wire fences and other defense structures along the border in line with Kim's policy of severing ties with South Korea. Seoul has said North Korean troops have repeatedly violated the border during the work and that South Korea's military has responded with firing warning shots. North Korea has denied the alleged border breaches.

Thursday's launches were the latest in a series of weapons tests by North Korea in recent weeks, which included submarine-launched cruise missiles and hypersonic missiles. Experts say North Korea likely aimed to pressure the U.S. into making bigger concessions as President Donald Trump expressed his desire to restore diplomacy with Kim.

On Saturday, Kim visited the Chinese border city of Dandong via a newly inaugurated bridge to pay respect at a memorial marking China’s support of North Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War. It was his sixth visit to China since succeeding his father as North Korean leader in late 2011.

At the memorial, Kim said North Korea will firmly carry forward “the invincible" friendship with China. Later he met top Chinese Communist Party official Wang Huning and reaffirmed his resolve to develop bilateral cooperation.

Kim has recently taken steps to bolster ties with China after years of prioritizing ties with Russia by sending troops and ammunitions to support its war against Ukraine.

Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.

North Korean soldiers stand near a military guard post, top left, as North Korea's artillery weapons, bottom, are seen from the observatory in Gimpo, South Korea, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

North Korean soldiers work near their military fences as seen from the observatory in Gimpo, South Korea, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

North Korean soldiers stand near a military guard post, top left, as North Korea's artillery weapons, bottom, are seen from the observatory in Gimpo, South Korea, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

North Korea's artillery weapon is seen from the observatory in Gimpo, South Korea, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

FILE - In this photo provided by the North Korean government, its leader Kim Jong Un delivers a speech during a session of the Supreme People's Assembly at parliament in Pyongyang, North Korea, on March 23, 2026. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israelis on Thursday waited for final election results to confirm what they see taking shape: No majority of parliament seats for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies, or for the array of parties seeking to unseat him.

Difficult decisions lie in the weeks ahead, including whether some Jewish and Arab parties would team up in a historic alliance, or whether some parties that campaigned on ousting Netanyahu would toss that aside and join forces with the deeply divisive prime minister. While this plays out, Netanyahu remains in charge.

Final results could come as early as Thursday evening after about a half-million absentee ballots are counted from military personnel, diplomats, people in prisons and hospitals, and others. They are not expected to sway the results dramatically.

The chief rival to Netanyahu, former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, in his first public statement since an address to supporters early Wednesday spoke of a government in service to all and reflecting the will of the people.

He did not mention the prospect of joining forces with the Arab-led parties that had a strong showing as some Arab citizens broke longstanding vows never to vote in a country in which they have long been subject to discrimination.

One of those Arab parties, the Joint List, late Wednesday noted the “unprecedented show of strength" and the Jewish voters "willing to swim against the tide of racism." It said it was open to political cooperation.

Netanyahu's Likud party, despite receiving the most votes, has accused the Arab-led parties of stealing the election and asked the election committee to investigate. It did not provide specific evidence to support its claims. The election committee has said the number of reported irregularities in the relatively calm election was low.

Israel’s president next week will task someone to form the next government. It has traditionally been the leader of the party with the most votes, but that’s not required.

If a new government cannot be formed after multiple attempts, Israel would face a new election early next year. On Wednesday, President Isaac Herzog signaled he wanted to avoid that step – something Eisenkot has said as well.

New elections bring new questions, including whether Arab citizens would again go to the polls in large numbers and whether the tens of thousands of Israelis who flew home to vote would do it again. Many had said they took that step to save the country from Netanyahu.

Israel, already divided along multiple fault lines – Jews and Arabs, secular and religious – entered the election with huge and painful issues at stake.

Those include whether the fast-growing ultra-Orthodox population should remain exempted from compulsory military service in a country where many families have seen their sons and daughters killed in three years of inconclusive wars.

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has been especially polarizing, with corruption allegations hanging over him along with accusations that he delayed making deals over the war in Gaza, including to free hostages, for political gain.

While many Israelis voted with security issues first in mind, the country’s international standing is also at stake after widespread criticism over the treatment of Palestinians in Gaza and growing violence by Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank.

For Arab citizens, there is cautious hope of change. “God willing, we will have something for us in the government, something that will bring us our rights,” said Brosli Elias, a resident of Nazareth, one of Israel’s largest Arab cities.

Meanwhile, the threat of further strikes against Iran adds to the election uncertainty, as the Trump administration has spoken of new attacks after the midterm elections on Nov. 3. Experts have said Netanyahu could seize on the renewed all-out war to press for a unity government with him in charge.

Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar ("Straight") party, waves an Israeli flag onstage following the release of the first exit poll results in Israel's general election in Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to his supporters at Likud party headquarters in Jerusalem after the release of the first exit poll results in Israel's general election, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

People walk next to a Likud party campaign ad featuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump, with a Hebrew message reading "We have one opportunity to win," in Jerusalem on Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, a day after the elections in Israel. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)