North Korea sharply escalated the rhetoric against its southern rival, claiming it would soon conduct “special actions” that would reduce South Korea's conservative government to ashes within minutes.

North Korea's military warned yesterday of imminent "special actions" that would reduce South Korea's government to ashes within minutes, sharply escalating the rhetoric against its southern rival.

North Korea's military vowed today to launch unspecified "special actions" soon meant to reduce South Korea's conservative government and media companies "to ashes" in less that four minutes, in an escalation of its recent threats. 

As the orchestrated mass celebrations commemorating the centenary of the birth of its "Eternal Supreme Leader" Kim Il-Sung drew to a close, North Korea's latest abortive rocket launch was met with opprobrium from the UN Security Council and the threat of a new wave of sanctions.

North Korea's new leader, Kim Jong-un, spoke in public for the first time yesterday, choosing the massive ceremony on the centenary of the birth of his grandfather, the "Great Leader", Kim Il-sung, to read from a prepared text vowing to build on the "military-first" policies propounded by his late father, Kim Jong-il.

The dismal failure of North Korea's rocket launch will, and should, be a cause for widespread relief. Whether the launch was intended, as Pyongyang insisted, to put a satellite in orbit marking the centenary of the birth of Kim Il-sung, or designed – as many Western observers believed – to test a long-range missile, or perhaps both, is for the moment an academic question.

The much-anticipated North Korean rocket launch that had threatened to cause a further deterioration in the relationship between the reclusive communist state and its neighbours today ended in failure.

North Korea's widely anticipated and controversial launch of its long-range rocket was said by the US to have failed last night, with China reporting the rocket had been seen falling into the sea after taking off.

North Korea fuelled up its latest long-range rocket yesterday, in defiance of vague threats from the US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton of "appropriate action" if it is launched.

North Korea was today injecting liquid fuel into the rocket it intends to send into space soon.

Preparations for North Korea's planned satellite launch this week have been completed, according to space officials who denied it is a cover for a missile test.

North Korean space officials said today that all assembly and preparations for a planned satellite launch have been completed, while denying it is a cover for a missile test.

New allegations coincide with rocket launch to mark North Korean founder's centenary

The country has some of the world's biggest – and most bizarre – buildings and landmarks.