SEOUL: North Korea's killing of a Seoul tourist who strayed from her resort into a military zone came in for fresh South Korean criticism Monday as it emerged previous trespassers had merely been warned.

The shooting of the 53-year-old housewife at the North's Mount Kumgang resort has further soured relations, after Pyongyang rejected a peace overture from South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak last Friday.

The North said the tourist, who was taking a dawn stroll on the beach near her hotel, had gone "beyond the clearly marked boundary fence" and intruded deep into a military-controlled area.

It said she fled when challenged and did not stop even when the soldier discharged warning shots, forcing him to open fire. The woman was hit twice and died at the scene.

The North has expressed regret but blamed Seoul for the incident and demanded it apologise, in what JoongAng Ilbo newspaper termed "stubborn audacity."

It refuses demands that South Korean government officials be allowed to investigate the scene.

A photo taken Sunday by the South Korean resort developer and tour operator Hyundai Asan shows no warning signs on the fence, which does not in any cause continue to the water's edge at low tide.

Hyundai Asan spokesman Kim Young-Soo told AFP his firm had erected a warning sign about 65-70 meters from the water's edge, depending on the tide.

"There have been several cases of crossing before but they were turned away by North Korean soldiers," he said.

"Previously, North Korea had not lodged a strong protest. We have warned tourists every time not to cross into the restricted area."

Chosun Ilbo newspaper quoted a man who visited the resort in June last year as saying he accidentally crossed into the military zone but was merely briefly detained and warned.

Hyundai Asan CEO Yoon Man-Joon, who left for the North Saturday to investigate the incident, was expected to return later Monday.

Despite the killing last Friday Lee in a speech to parliament went ahead with a public offer of negotiations.

But Pyongyang said the talks proposal "does not deserve even the slightest notice" and called Lee a "traitor" who was responsible for their strained relations.

Ties worsened after the conservative Lee took office in February promising a tougher line on Pyongyang. He softened his stance Friday, calling for talks on implementing summit deals reached by his liberal predecessors with the North.

The North has suspended all official dialogue since he came to power.

South Korea said Sunday the killing was unjustifiable and urged the North to let it participate in an inquiry, a demand echoed by major papers which speculated the killing may have been premeditated.

Chosun Ilbo said witnesses reported hearing only two shots despite the North's claim to have fired warning shots.

It said the killing could be a strategy to put pressure on the South Korean government by raising tensions at the resort or at another joint project, the Kaesong industrial estate.

Dong-A Ilbo said the North's demand for an apology "makes us suspect that it could be an intentional provocation and not accidental."

JoongAng Ilbo commented: "Shooting an unarmed middle-aged woman is an act by a country that has given up trying to be civilised."

- AFP/yb