Gimpo International Airport bombing
Coordinates37°33′58″N 126°48′00″E / 37.566°N 126.800°E / 37.566; 126.800
Date14 September 1986
3:12 pm[1] (UTC+9)
Deaths5
Injured30–36
PerpetratorNorth Korea

On 14 September 1986, a bomb blast at Gimpo International Airport, the then-main airport serving Seoul in South Korea, killed five people and injured around 30 others. All the victims were South Koreans.[2]

Officials blamed agents acting on behalf of the government of North Korea for the attack.[3] It took place just six days before the start of the 1986 Asian Games hosted by Seoul. National Police Director Kang Min Chang said North Korea performed the terrorist attack in an attempt to disrupt the Asian Games. He also said the attack was similar to the Rangoon bombing in 1983 when dozens of South Koreans lost their lives.[4]

These bombings, including that of Korean Air Flight 858 in 1987, caused the South Korean government to apply massive security measures for the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.[5]

References

  1. ^ Haberman, Clyde (15 September 1986). "5 DEAD, 36 HURT IN AN EXPLOSION AT SEOUL AIRPORT". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  2. ^ "The bombing at Kimpo International Airport appears to have..." Archived from the original on 2018-07-12. Retrieved 2018-07-11.
  3. ^ Bairner, Alan; Kelly, John; Lee, Jung Woo (4 October 2016). "Routledge Handbook of Sport and Politics". Routledge – via Google Books.
  4. ^ JAMESON, SAM (15 September 1986). "Bomb Kills 5 in Seoul; North Koreans Blamed". Archived from the original on 2015-09-19. Retrieved 2018-07-11 – via LA Times.
  5. ^ "Massive Security For Seoul Olympics". Archived from the original on 2018-07-12. Retrieved 2018-07-11.
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