International

North Korea Allegedly Hit One of Its Own Cities With a Missile in Test Blunder

North Korea Allegedly Hit One of Its Own Cities With a Missile in Test Blunder
Background image: alleged site of failed test missile strike in North Korea (via Google Maps). Inlaid: photo taken on Nov. 29, 2017 and released on Nov. 30, 2017 by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows launching of the Hwasong-15 missile which is capable of reaching all parts of the United States. AFP PHOTO / KCNA VIA KNS
Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
|Updated:

North Korea accidentally hit one its own cities with a missile, according to a report published in The Diplomat on Wednesday, Jan. 3.

Satellite images show damage caused by a failed test launch that struck Tokchon, a city of 200,000 in the interior of the country, according to a US government source with knowledge of North Korea’s weapons programs.

An intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), named the Hwasong KN-17, was fired from Pukchang Airfield in South Pyongan Province, 40 miles north of Pyongyang on April 28 last year, the source told The Diplomat.

But after about one minute of powered flight, the rocket crashed down in the Chongsin-dong area of the city, apparently damaging what appears to be an agricultural or industrial building.

Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
Tom Ozimek is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times. He has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education.
twitter