North Korea Test-Fires Missiles

South Korea put its military on alert immediately following the North’s announcement Saturday of the death of 69-year-old leader Kim Jong-il, and Pyongyang on Monday promptly test-fired two short-range missiles off its east coast. The situation on the peninsula is filled with uncertainty, but South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said an unnamed government official insisted the launch was unrelated to the death of Kim, who died Saturday of a heart attack. The North frequently conducts short-range missile tests, but South Korean officials say they are sometimes timed to coincide with periods of tension.