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North Korea defies warnings to launch rocket | |
(35 minutes later) | |
North Korea has launched its rocket in defiance of international warnings, South Korea and Japan say. | |
The rocket went up at 09:49 local time (00:49 GMT) from a site on the west coast. It is not yet clear whether the launch was a complete success. | |
North Korea says its rocket will put a satellite into space, but several nations say the launch is a cover for long-range missile development. | |
A previous launch in April failed when the rocket broke up after take-off. | A previous launch in April failed when the rocket broke up after take-off. |
That rocket flew for only a few minutes before exploding and crashing into the sea west of the Korean peninsula. | |
'Extremely regrettable' | |
This rocket was scheduled to pass between the Korean peninsula and China, with a second stage coming down off the Philippines before launching the satellite into orbit. | |
The Japanese government, which put its armed forces on alert ahead of the launch, said the rocket appeared to have passed over Okinawa prefecture. | |
"The missile that North Korea calls a satellite passed over Okinawa around 1001. We launched no interception," a government statement quoted by AFP news agency said. | |
Japan had threatened to shoot down any debris which infringed on its territory, deploying naval vessels and land-based missile interceptors. | |
Its top government spokesman called the launch "extremely regrettable" and something that Japan "cannot tolerate". | |
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, meanwhile, has called an emergency meeting of his top advisors in response to the launch. | |
Seoul, Washington and other nations had urged North Korea not to go ahead with the launch, warning that it would constitute a test of long-range missile technology banned under UN resolutions. | |
North Korea has not yet made any formal announcement on the launch, which comes only two days after it warned that technical problems could force a delay. | |
It also comes a week ahead of the South Korean presidential election and roughly a year from the death of leader Kim Jong-il, who died on 17 December 2011. |