North Korea’s army has recruited 1.4 million young men filled with “burning hatred’ and vengefulness” towards Pyongyang’s enemies, the hermit state’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) has claimed.
The recruitment drive lasted just two days between October 14 and 15, as tensions on the Korean Peninsula threaten to explode.
Those enlisting are said to have been youth league officials, students and workers from various industries across the country.
The new recruits were described as being eager to participate in a “holy war” to defend the nation’s sovereignty from potential enemies such as South Korea.
Pyongyang is furious at what it claims was a violation of its territorial integrity by South Korea.
Drones from South Korea allegedly scattered propaganda leaflets over North Korea’s capital.
Pyongyang said the incident could lead “to armed conflict and even war” in a belligerent response.
“If a war breaks out, the Republic of Korea [ROK] will be wiped off the map,” the KCNA said.
“Since it wants war, we are willing to put an end to its existence.”
Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, claimed there was “clear evidence” linking Seoul to the drones.
“If these provocations happen again, the consequences will be horrible,” she warned.
Military units from the North have already blown up all road and rail links with South Korea.
South Korea initially denied any involvement, but later its Joint Chiefs of Staff stated that they could neither confirm nor deny the allegations.
This is not the first time North Korea has carried out a mass military enlistment in the face of what it perceives as threats to its security.
State media claimed in 2017 that nearly 3.5 million people volunteered for the army in response to US pressure on Pyongyang.
There are suggestions that the drones may have been operated by activists, who previously used balloons to send propaganda leaflets to the North.
