North Korea has begun blasting eerie, disturbing sounds across the border into South Korea, tormenting villagers and disrupting daily life. Residents of Dangsan, a small village near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), say the relentless noise – from gong-like bangs to ghostly screams – has made life unbearable, with some calling it 'noise bombing'.
“It's driving us crazy,” one resident told the NY Times. 'You can't sleep at night. It's bombing without shells,” she said, describing the endless torment.
Since July, North Korea's loudspeakers have been active 24 hours a day, replacing traditional propaganda broadcasts with unnerving sounds. These sounds, described as metallic crunching, howling wolves or even artillery fire, take a psychological toll on the villagers, causing insomnia, headaches and stress.
Unlike traditional propaganda broadcasts, which featured music and human voices, these sounds have no discernible message. “At least the old broadcasts were human sounds we could tolerate,” said another resident, reflecting on past tensions.
This auditory attack is part of the escalating tensions between the two Koreas. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has abandoned dialogue with South Korea and the US, while South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has stepped up military exercises with allies and resumed propaganda broadcasts against the North.
In May, North Korea retaliated against anti-Kim leaflets from defectors in the South by releasing its own balloons full of trash. Soon after, the South resumed broadcasting K-pop and news through loudspeakers, prompting the North's eerie counterattack.
“North Korea knows its propaganda no longer works against South Koreans,” said Kang Dong-wan, a North Korea expert. “The purpose of the speakers has changed from spreading propaganda to forcing South Korea to stop its own broadcasts and leaflets.”
For the residents of Dangsan, the psychological toll is enormous. Once proud of their quiet, rural lifestyle, villagers now seal their windows with Styrofoam and avoid outdoor activities. “The government has abandoned us because there are a small number of us and mainly old people,” says a 75-year-old resident.
Despite parliamentary visits and emotional pleas for relief, officials have offered little more than temporary measures such as double glazing and livestock medicine. Villagers fear they are pawns in a brutal political impasse.
“The two Koreas should once again adhere to their old agreements and not slander each other,” said Koh Yu-hwan, former head of the Korea Institute for National Unification. Yet North Korea has recently destroyed key transportation links and disrupted GPS signals near the border, signaling its intention to escalate further.
