North Korea says it test-fired tactical ballistic missile with cluster warhead

North Korea said Thursday that it has test-fired a tactical ballistic missile equipped with a cluster munition warhead, claiming the weapon is capable of devastating targeted areas with high-intensity force, according to Yonhap News Agency.

The launch involved the surface-to-surface Hwasong-11Ka missile and formed part of a series of tests of what Pyongyang described as “important” weapons systems conducted between Monday and Wednesday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

The state-run agency said the test verified the missile’s ability to “reduce to ashes” targets spanning approximately 6.5 to 7 hectares using high-density explosive power.

According to KCNA, the exercise was intended to assess both the operational effectiveness of the tactical ballistic missile and the destructive capacity of its cluster-type warhead.

South Korea’s military also said earlier that North Korea carried out multiple short-range ballistic missile launches this week, including from the Wonsan area toward the East Sea, while an earlier projectile fired from Pyongyang appeared to fail shortly after launch.