Update at 18:00 KST: this article has been updated to include a response from the South Korean government

A defector-run activist group in South Korea said on Tuesday that it successfully launched 20 balloons carrying anti-regime banners, leaflets, and SD cards over the border the night before.

The alleged launch took place in the border city of Paju on Monday night, and defied a formal ban from Seoul that was enacted amid increasing inter-Korean tensions over the issue.

Fighters for a Free North Korea (FFNK) originally planned to send the balloons on Thursday — the anniversary of the start of