Missile hits Japanese waters

Provocative move: North Korea fired a ballistic missile towards the Sea of Japan in an apparent show of force against the planned deployment of a US missile defence system. — AFP

Seoul: North Korea fired a ballistic missile directly into Japanese-controlled waters for the first time, drawing an outraged response from Tokyo and ramping up tensions with the United States and South Korea.

The US military said the North had actually launched two Rodong intermediate-range missiles simultaneously, but one appeared to have exploded on take-off.