Seoul: North Korea on Thursday warned of military action unless South Korea stops propaganda broadcasts in border areas within 48 hours, Seoul's defence ministry said on Thursday.

The warning message urged South Korea's frontline army units to stop propaganda broadcasts within 48 hours and remove all available facilities for psychological warfare, Xinhua news agency reported.

Unless the South Korean military follows the call, North Korean forces will launch military actions, Pyongyang further warned.

The message was sent after North Korea earlier in the day fired a shell toward South Korea near its border. The South Korean military retaliated with scores of shells.

The North Korean shell landed in a hill near South Korea's army units. No damages and casualties have been reported yet.

Tensions escalated over the inter-Korean border after two South Korean soldiers were maimed by the explosion of landmines, which South Korea claimed was planted by Pyongyang.

North Korea has denied the allegation.

In retaliation for the provocation, the South Korean military resumed the propaganda broadcasts for the first time in about 11 years with loudspeakers, which North Korea called "a direct action of declaring war."

(IANS)