North Korea has threatened preemptive strikes in response to the Seoul-Washington alliance’s recent special forces’ exercises aimed at incapacitating the North Korean leadership.
 
In a warning announced on Sunday through the North’s media outlets, the North Korean People’s Army said the regime will mercilessly trample on the enemies’ attempts to attack its leader with its own preemptive special operations and strikes.  
 
The warning was made in response to the special forces’ drills conducted as part of the joint annual Foal Eagle military exercises between South Korea and the U.S. The drills drew the participation from elite U.S. special forces, such as the Navy SEAL Team 6, which assassinated former Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden.
 
In response to the North’s threats, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff issued a statement saying it will sternly retaliate against North Korean provocations to ensure such actions will only lead to the North’s self-destruction.