US, South Korea on High Military Alert

The US and South Korea have boosted their military status to high alert after North Korea's warning yesterday that it's scrapping the treaty that halted the Korean War, the BBC reports. Military officials are closely analyzing transmissions and movement from the North, which has threatened a  "powerful military strike" if any of its ships are searched for weapons of mass destruction.

"If North Korea stages a provocation, we will respond resolutely,” said a statement from the South Korean military. “We advise our people to trust our military’s solid readiness and feel safe." The UN Security Council is working on ways to punish North Korea for its nuclear test and other actions this week, and the US has condemned Pyongyang's "sabre-rattling and and threats." (More Pyongyang stories.)