Holes discovered in barbed wire fences along the southern perimeter of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) were likely cut by a civilian defecting to the North, the Defense Ministry said Tuesday, quelling concerns that North Korean soldiers had infiltrated the heavily fortified border.

``We concluded that footprints indicated a single person may have defected to the North,"" Brig. Gen. Hwang Jung-sun, the ministry"s deputy director of operations, told reporters following a joint investigation of the scene by the military, police and the National Intelligence Service.
He said the direction and shape of the holes indicated they were cut from the southern side and no attempt had been made to hide the breach, as would be expected in the case of a North Korean infiltration.

The military called off a massive search operation for suspected infiltrators and investigators were shifting their focus to finding out who had crossed to North Korea, Hwang said. All South Korean troops stationed in the area have been accounted for, he said.

Seoul was put on high alert early Tuesday after a border patrol discovered the three square holes roughly 40 centimeters in diameter cut in fences along the DMZ near Yonchon, about 60 kilometers north of Seoul, at 1:46 a.m.

The Defense Ministry immediately raised the security status around the Yonchon area to ``Chindokgae 1,"" the highest alert possible unless North Korean infiltrators are actually sighted.

``An operation is underway to deal with any possible infiltration by the enemy,"" Hwang had told an earlier briefing. ``This includes both search operations and an investigation, taking several possibilities into consideration.""

The security alert came as Colin Powell, U.S. secretary of state, made a one-day stopover in Seoul to discuss the North Korean nuclear standoff and other issues.

Some experts speculated that Pyongyang was trying to create a scare in the South to disrupt the top Washington official"s visit, while others raised the possibility that a North Korean soldiers seeking to defect to South Korea cut the holes.

As a precaution, soldiers and police tightened inspections at 54 checkpoints on roads north of Seoul and established 16 temporary checkpoints. Troops were also positioned at foothills around the border area and farmers were told not to work in nearby fields. Military officials said reservists could be called up if necessary.

Tight security was already in place in central Seoul around the main government building where Powell was meeting senior South Korean officials.

Earlier this month, the Navy launched a large-scale search-and-destroy mission off the east coast, reportedly following U.S. intelligence that several North Korean submarines were operating in the area. No submarines were found.

Tuesday"s alert also came on the 25th anniversary of the assassination of former President Park Chung-hee, a South Korean leader much reviled by the North. In 1968, North Korean commandos came close to reaching the presidential office of Chong Wa Dae before being stopped by South Korean forces.

rjs@koreatimes.co.kr