N. Korean troops crossed inter-Korean land border 10 times in November: lawmaker

North Korean soldiers crossed the heavily fortified inter-Korean land border on 10 occasions last month as part of their continued construction activities near the border, a lawmaker said Friday, citing military data. Since March up until recently, there have been 16 cases of North Korean soldiers breaching the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) in the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas, according to information submitted by the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) to main opposition People Power Party Rep. Kang Dae-sik. A majority of the border crossings reported in November occurred in the eastern coastal county of Goseong, with six cases reported in the area, followed by three in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province, and one in Hwancheon, Gangwon Province. The military attributed the recent rise in border intrusions in Goseong to its geographic traits. "While the North Korean military has been clearing land in the Goseong area since November, border intrusions have been reported because that section of the MDL is shaped pointed toward the northern side," JCS spokesperson Lee Sung-jun said in a