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2009/11/10 15:21 KST
15 holes on S. Korean boat after clash with N. Korean navy: official

  
By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Nov. 10 (Yonhap) -- About 15 holes were found on the South Korean patrol boat that engaged in a skirmish with a North Korean vessel on Tuesday off the west coast, an official said.

   The South Korean boat used its guns to retaliate after taking fire from the North Korean vessel a little over 3km away, the South Korean defense official told reporters in a briefing.

The South Korean Navy sounded a warning twice before the North Korean boat crossed the Northern Limit Line -- a de facto border drawn at the end of the Korean War -- and three times afterward.

   "The battle lasted about two minutes," the official said, stressing the South Korean Navy followed standard operating procedure before the shooting erupted.

   samkim@yna.co.kr
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