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North Korea 'launches long-range rocket' North Korea defies warnings to launch rocket
(35 minutes later)
North Korea has launched a long-range rocket, South Korean news sources have reported. 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.
North Korea says it plans to put a satellite into space, but many countries believe the tests are a cover for weapons development. That rocket flew for only a few minutes before exploding and crashing into the sea west of the Korean peninsula.
The US and other nations had previously warned the launch would constitute a test of long-range missile technology banned under UN resolutions. 'Extremely regrettable'
South Korean television network YTN said the rocket was launched from a site on the west coast of the North. 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 missile appears to have passed over Okinawa. The Japanese government, which put its armed forces on alert ahead of the launch, said the rocket appeared to have passed over Okinawa prefecture.
It said it had not attempted to intercept the rocket. "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.
The 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. 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.