Kim Jong Un Fires 3 Missiles, Triggering Emergency Warnings In Japan

Kim Jong Un on Thursday fired another round of missiles, adding to a barrage of recent weapons tests by North Korea.

What Happened: North Korea fired at least three missiles, including a failed intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, forcing Japan to issue evacuation alerts, reported Reuters. 

This comes a day after Kim's isolated nation fired at least 23 missiles, the most it has ever fired in a single day.

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Seoul officials believe the ICBM, which was earlier expected to have flown over Japan, failed in flight, Yonhap news agency reported.

The newswire, citing anonymous military sources, said that the missile possibly failed to maintain normal flight following a stage separation.

Japan's Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said his military lost track of it after the missile "disappeared" in the skies above waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. 

Kim Jong Un has had several failed ICBM tests this year, according to South Korea and U.S. officials, the report noted.

Seoul's foreign ministry said Vice Foreign Minister Cho Hyun Dong and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman strongly condemned Pyongyang's series of missile launches as "deplorable, immoral" during their phone call. 

Early on Wednesday, North Korea also issued warnings and demanded that the U.S. and South Korea halt joint military exercises, saying such "rashness and provocation can be no longer tolerated."

The U.S. and South Korea began one of their largest combined military air drills on Monday, involving hundreds of warplanes from both sides staging mock attacks 24 hours a day for the better part of a week.

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