South Korean intelligence has confirmed that Hamas militants are using North Korean-made weapons in the war with Israel.
North Korea sold weapons to Hamas
South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) has confirmed the Voice of America's (VOA) report that Hamas militants used the F-7 multiple rocket launcher system manufactured by North Korea.
The newspaper previously published a photo showing a combination of Korean characters and numbers, such as "비저-7류" and "시8-" on the fuze of an F-7 grenade launcher allegedly used by Hamas.
When asked about the report, NIS said it "scores the same as the VOA report."
The fuse with Korean characters is located in the middle part of the North Korean-made F-7 missile, Yonhap News Agency reports.
The intelligence agency also said it was "collecting and accumulating" detailed evidence of North Korea's alleged supply of its weapons to Hamas.
But it is currently difficult to provide such evidence due to the need to protect sources of information and due to diplomatic ties, the intelligence agency said.
South Korea's military previously said North Korea appeared to be selling weapons to Hamas and could use military tactics similar to those used against Israel to launch a surprise attack on South Korea.
North Korean weapons in Russia's war against Ukraine
On January 5, the White House announced that North Korea had recently provided Russia with several dozen ballistic missiles and their launchers.
Russian troops have already used some missiles during their latest attacks on Ukraine on December 30 and January 2.
Ukraine still has no direct evidence that Russia used North Korean missiles against Ukraine. Still, the prosecutor's office admits that a missile provided by North Korea may have attacked Kharkiv on January 2.
