The North Korean Tree That Almost Started WW3

The day began simply enough, with Captain Arthur Bonifas and Lieutenant Mark Barrett going on what seemed to be the most boring mission of their careers. They would lead a work detail of American and Korean soldiers on a task that seemed, on the face of it at least, to be something so routine, it wouldn’t even be interesting enough to write home about. In fact, the mission revolved around gardening, a hobby so mundane it’s more closely associated with retirees than soldiers. Little did anyone know that by the end of the day, both Bonifas and Barrett would be dead, hacked to death by an unexpected enemy. Who was responsible for this butchery? Was it one of their own men, or someone else?

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Credit:
Simple History Creator: Daniel Turner (B.A. (Hons) in History, University College London)
Video Directors: Anthony Barrett, Denis Blinov
Script: Tash Martell
Script Review: Peter Turner
Artists: ShyShelly, Arya Ahumada Lydisma
Animators: Kuldip Bheda, Krunal, Mani Kumar, Bharghavi
Editor: Alec Urbany, James Dowse
Senior Production Manager: Umar Ijaz
Simple History Channel Manager: James Dowse

[ateocara]

North Korea's mad bulldog Pak Chol was killed by South Korean special forces 8 years later. South Korean airborne troops successfully retaliated for the US soldier who was killed with an axe.

[qpyedxk]

Fun Fact :

Park Chung-hee, the then South Korean president, said, "Bring my helmet and boots right now. Crazy dogs must be clubbed." Then, he ordered an attack on a North Korean guard post. The U.S. military was unaware of what would happen because this order was not notified to them

So, The U.S. military was very embarrassed to see the South Korean paratroopers who were escorting them, suddenly running to a North Korean guard post with clubs and guns

When an Us army driver, fearful of WW3, tried to stop them, the paratroopers threatened him with a pistol and made him get out of the way.

The North Korean soldiers tried to restrain them several times while the South Korean paratroopers smashed their guard posts, But every time the North Korean soldiers approached them, the South Korean paratroopers threatened them with a swearing, so north koreans retreated in fear.

Park Chung-hee ordered that the North Korean soldiers be killed immediately if they approached within 30 km, but none were killed because the North Korean soldiers was scared

This operation was obviously a reckless Operation, so all South Korean paratroopers wrote a will before attacking

[IRONFOX-fyse]

I was mentioning this incident to my son. Warfighters must always be prepared and TRUST NO ONE.
Thank you for sharing.

[AlbertPorto-zy]

I remember this incident very well as a member of a rifle company in the 2nd Infantry Division at Camp Hovey, Korea

[NarbsTheGreat]

Getting mad over a tree and killing over it is some Elven logic lol

[Nekyomi]

this is one of the most bizarre stories I've ever seen. The first time I saw a story like this was from Countryball comic strip summarizing this conflict but never explained what happened after the murders.

[EnRiCo]

a certain Blue Jay once says, "To give'em a little back up"

[soulknife]

North Korea said the US couldn't have anyone on the ground. They never mentioned the air or sea.

[deniseeulert]

I was in the US Army, in South Korea, when this happened. We were confined to base, working extended shifts. It really did come close to war. It was not long until I was supposed to be going back stateside, and I was allowed to make a MARS call home. Before the radio connection was made I was told, "If anyone asks what is happening, just say everything's fine." That's when it got scary.

[U.S._Army_Retired]

I was part of the response for this act. My Company C co. 1/72d Armor, I was a gunner, along with 2 companies from our mech inf. Bn's made up Strike Force Brady from Camp Casey that day. We deployed as a reaction force but was stopped short of The JSA (Panmunjom). We set up a blocking force and for 4 days stayed in that position. We had 16 Tanks and many APC's with infantry waiting for the word to attack with orders to kill anything that moved.

[ateocara]

The North Korean officer who led the axe murder incident was eliminated by the South Korean military two years later. At that time, the South Korean leader mobilized 60 South Korean airborne troops to destroy two North Korean outposts, and the United States was furious that this increased the risk of war. However, the South Korean military retaliated and killed the North Korean officer two years later. After that, North Korea's Kim Il-sung issued his first apology to the South Korean government.

[hfar_in_the_sky]

To me, I always thought it was oh so convenient that a tree that helped mask the NK portion of the DMZ just “happened” to be a tree planted by their most revered leader. Like “Oh was it now?” 😑

[GeorgeTyrrell-qmep]

the Americans were verry considerate and didn't want to disobey various treaties as no standing army was allowed in the dmz so they brought their army over the dmz.

[HarshmanHills]

The US believes in "proportional" response

[dodgermaven]

This history video has never made me more proud to be an arborist in my life.

[Minboelf]

US respounds later would be a definition of "exert dominance"

[longtabsigo]

When I was a commander in Korea, I would send my new soldiers up to the DMZ to get a feel for it, I also showed them the video of the murders and reminded them that we should not assume just because we have no interest or desire to “shoot first” that those other guys are thinking like are. It was a really good thing that I had a set of PinPoint orders for a specific unit, because when I in-processed, no sooner had I walked thru the door, at 6’2”+ I heard a major say “There is the next guy in line for that commander job up in the “Joint Security Area” where one of the only qualifications is that you are 6 feet tall or or taller! It is no joke up there.

[josefk]

I am guessing Kim Il Sung did not really plant that tree, but the North Koreans protected it and made up that story because the tree was useful in its view-obstructing value. I remember reading the Bonifas story in Rick Atkinson's book The Long Gray Line.

[sodog]

And according to the Fat Electrician, our response was "Proportional".

[bigchrisp]

If this isn’t an act of war, I don’t know what is.