North Korea launched a missile that flew over Japan on Aug. 28 — around 6 a.m. on Aug. 29 in Japan — according to the Pentagon, the Japanese government, and other official sources. Here's what we can confirm as of 7:00 p.m. ET:
- The Department of Defense confirmed reports of a missile launch, stating [1], "The missile launched by North Korea flew over Japan. We are still in the process of assessing this launch." The statement also confirmed that the missile poses no threat to North America at this time.
- South Korean officials say "the missile traveled around 2,700 kilometers (1,677 miles) and reached a maximum height of 550 kilometers (341 miles) as it flew over the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido," the AP reports [2].
- Before entering emergency meetings at his office, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters, "We will make utmost efforts to firmly protect the lives of the people," according to Reuters [3].
- Despite repeated warnings, Kim Jong-un has ordered the launch of a total of 18 missiles this year. That's two more than his father, Kim Jong-il, launched during his time in power.
- This latest launch comes as the US and South Korea are conducting annual military drills in the Pacific [4]. It's the second time in less than a week that North Korea has responded to these exercises with a missile launch, though the previous one on Aug. 26 failed while in flight.
- The trajectory of the missile appears to be as follows:
Path taken by North Korea's missile, over Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido (@NHK [5] via @martyn_williams [6]) pic.twitter.com/z8jgPnuIfo [7]
— Hiroko Tabuchi (@HirokoTabuchi) August 28, 2017 [8]
This is a developing story and we will update this page as more information becomes available.