A picture released by the North Korean Central News Agency shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appearing without his cane at an event with military commanders in Pyongyang on Tuesday, November 4. Kim, who recently disappeared from public view for about six weeks, had a cyst removed from his right ankle, a lawmaker told CNN. Kim is seen walking with a cane in this image released Thursday, October 30, by the state-run Korean Central News Agency. Kim talks with officials during an airmen inspection. Kim sits in the pilot's seat of a fighter jet during the inspection. Kim sits at a desk during the inspection. This undated photo, released Tuesday, October 14, by the KCNA, shows Kim inspecting a housing complex in Pyongyang, North Korea. International speculation about Kim went into overdrive after he failed to attend events on Friday, October 10, the 65th anniversary of the Workers' Party. He hadn't been seen in public since he reportedly attended a concert with his wife on September 3. A picture released by the KCNA shows Kim and his wife watching a performance by the Moranbong Band on Wednesday, September 3, in Pyongyang. Kim tours a front-line military unit in this image released Wednesday, July 16, by the KCNA. Kim poses for a photo as he oversees a tactical rocket-firing drill in June. Kim watches a tactical rocket-firing drill in June. A North Korean soldier patrols the bank of the Yalu River, which separates the North Korean town of Sinuiju from the Chinese border town of Dandong, on Saturday, April 26. A soldier looks through binoculars inside a sentry post along the bank of the Yalu River on Monday, April 7. In this photo released Thursday, April 24, by the Korean Central News Agency, Kim smiles with female soldiers after inspecting a rocket-launching drill at an undisclosed location. A picture released Tuesday, March 18, by the KCNA shows Kim attending a shooting practice at a military academy in Pyongyang. A North Korean soldier uses binoculars on Thursday, February 6, to look at South Korea from the border village of Panmunjom, which has separated the two Koreas since the Korean War. A North Korean soldier kicks a pole along the banks of the Yalu River on Tuesday, February 4. A photo released by the KCNA on Thursday, January 23, shows the North Korean leader inspecting an army unit during a winter drill. Kim inspects the command of an army unit in this undated photo released Sunday, January 12, by the KCNA. Kim visits an army unit in this undated photo. A picture released by the KCNA on Wednesday, December 25, shows Kim visiting an army unit near the western port city of Nampo. Kim inspects a military factory in this undated picture released by the KCNA in May 2013. Kim visits the Ministry of People's Security in 2013 as part of the country's May Day celebrations. A North Korean soldier, near Sinuiju, gestures to stop photographers from taking photos in April 2013. North Korean soldiers gather by the docks in Sinuiju, near the Chinese border, in April 2013. North Korean soldiers patrol near the Yalu River in April 2013. Kim is briefed by his generals in this undated photo. On the wall is a map titled "Plan for the strategic forces to target mainland U.S." Kim works during a briefing in this undated photo. In this KCNA photo, Kim inspects naval drills at an undisclosed location on North Korea's east coast in March 2013. Kim, with North Korean soldiers, makes his way to an observation post in March 2013. Kim uses a pair of binoculars to look south from the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment, near South Korea's Taeyonphyong Island, in March 2013. Kim is greeted by a soldier's family as he inspects the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment in March 2013. Kim is surrounded by soldiers during a visit to the Mu Islet Hero Defense Detachment, also near Taeyonphyong Island, in March 2013. Kim arrives at Jangjae Islet by boat to meet with soldiers of the Jangjae Islet Defense Detachment in March 2013. Soldiers in the North Korean army train at an undisclosed location in March 2013. In a photo released by the official North Korean news agency in December 2012, Kim celebrates a rocket's launch with staff from the satellite control center in Pyongyang. Kim, center, poses in this undated picture released by North Korea's official news agency in November 2012. Kim visits the Rungna People's Pleasure Ground, under construction in Pyongyang, in a photo released in July 2012 by the KCNA. A crowd watches as statues of North Korean founder Kim Il Sung and his son Kim Jong Il are unveiled during a ceremony in Pyongyang in April 2012. A North Korean soldier stands guard in front of an UNHA III rocket at the Tangachai-ri Space Center in April 2012. In April 2012, Pyongyang launched a long-range rocket that broke apart and fell into the sea. Here, the UNHA III rocket is pictured on its launch pad in Tang Chung Ri, North Korea. A closer look at the UNHA III rocket on its launch pad in Tang Chung Ri, North Korea. A military vehicle participates in a parade in Pyongyang in April 2012. North Koreans wave flags in front of portraits of Kim Il Sung, left, and Kim Jong Il during celebrations to mark the 100th birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang in April 2012. North Korean soldiers relax at the end of an official ceremony attended by leader Kim Jong Un at a stadium in Pyongyang in April 2012. Kim Jong Un applauds as he watches a military parade in Pyongyang in April 2012. A North Korean soldier stands on a balcony in Pyongyang in April 2012. North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang in April 2012. Soldiers board a bus outside a theater in Pyongyang in April 2012. North Korean performers sit below a screen showing images of leader Kim Jong Un in Pyongyang in April 2012. North Korean soldiers salute during a military parade in Pyongyang in April 2012. North Korean soldiers listen to a speech during an official ceremony attended by leader Kim Jong Un at a stadium in Pyongyang in April 2012. Members of a North Korean military band gather following an official ceremony at the Kim Il Sung stadium in Pyongyang in April 2012. North Korean military personnel watch a performance in Pyongyang in April 2012. A North Korean controller is seen along the railway line between the Pyongyang and North Pyongan provinces in April 2012. A North Korean military honor guard stands at attention at Pyongyang's airport in May 2001.
- South Korea: About 10 North Korean soldiers approached the Military Demarcation Line
- The South fired about 20 warning shots, a Defense Ministry official says
- The North Korean patrol didn't return fire and eventually retreated, the official says
Seoul, South Korea (CNN) -- South Korean soldiers fired warning shots at a patrol from North Korea to turn it back from the two sides' border, a South Korean Defense Ministry official said Monday.
About 10 North Korean soldiers approached the Military Demarcation Line around 9:40 a.m. Monday, said the official, who declined to be identified.
"After a warning broadcast, the South Korean side fired about 20 rounds of warning shots," the official said.
The North Koreans didn't fire any shots back and retreated from the heavily fortified area -- near Paju City, northwest of Seoul -- around three hours after the initial confrontation, the official said.
North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency hadn't published any mention of the incident as of Monday afternoon.
Tensions periodically flare along the line that divides the two Koreas, which technically remain at war from their conflict in the 1950s. They signed a ceasefire but not a formal peace treaty in 1953.
A similar incident, in which the South Korean military fired at North Korean soldiers approaching the border, took place last month, according to the South's Defense Ministry.
The two countries regularly accuse each others' vessels of violating their disputed sea borders, and warning shots are sometimes fired.
Less common are exchanges of fire between the two heavily armed neighbors. The two sides fired hundreds of shells across their western sea border in March.
In November 2010, North Korea shelled South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island, killing four people in what Pyongyang said was a response to a South Korean military drill in the area.
CNN's K.J. Kwon reported from Seoul, and Jethro Mullen wrote from Hong Kong. CNN's Brian Walker contributed to this report.
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