The National Assembly has launched an investigation of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s martial law enactment on Dec. 3, after a commander testified he received direct orders from the president to detain lawmakers. Speaker Woo Won-shik told reporters Wednesday that the commander’s testimony given at the Assembly national defense committee a day prior suggested Yoon tried to block lawmakers from gathering to prevent them from exercising their constitutional duties. “If the testimony is

Politics Dec. 11, 2024

Dozens of generals and military leaders attended a questioning session by the Assembly national defense committee on Tuesday, a week after troops stormed the parliament grounds overnight on Dec. 3-4. One by one, key commanders testified against Yoon on his aborted bid to impose martial law. In a shocking revelation, Special Warfare Commander Lt. Gen. Kwak Jong-geun claimed to have received a call from Yoon, who told him to “break open the door, and drag the lawmakers out.” “The

Politics Dec. 10, 2024

Senior officers of the military were ordered to be on standby for a North Korea-related situation in the days leading up to President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law, in another sign that the events that unfolded on Dec. 3 were plotted in advance. Colonel-level commanders were called to be on guard for an imminent provocation by North Korea on Dec. 1, two days before Yoon declared martial law, according to Maj. Gen. Lee Kyung-min. Speaking before the National Assembly on Tuesday

Politics Dec. 10, 2024

The leader of the 707th special mission group said his commandos are victims of Kim Yong-hyun, the ex-minister who was arrested Sunday. The group’s commandos were tasked with entering the National Assembly after martial law was declared. Col. Kim Hyun-tae, who leads the Special Warfare Command’s elite 707th special mission group, told reporters Monday that he was responsible for making the commandos follow the ex-minister’s orders to break into the parliament’s main build

Politics Dec. 9, 2024

The prime minister and the leader of the ruling conservative party on Sunday jointly announced their plans to fill in for President Yoon Suk Yeol, claiming he will no longer be involved in handling state affairs, in a move denounced by the main opposition as unconstitutional. In a public address given by Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and the ruling People Power Party Chair Han Dong-hoon, the two said they would cooperate in operational matters related to "national governance." They did a

Politics Dec. 8, 2024

The Democratic Party of Korea rejected the ruling People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon’s proposal that his party and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo would fill in while President Yoon Suk Yeol is phased out of office. In a joint address to the nation Sunday, Han said his party and the prime minister would lead the running of the country as the president steps down in an orderly transition of power. Rep. Kim Min-seok, the No. 2 of the Democratic Party, said the ruling party proposal to take

Politics Dec. 8, 2024

The National Assembly vote on whether to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol was left open for hours on Saturday, as 300 members of the parliament gathered for a rare weekend plenary session. The bill to impeach Yoon was put to vote four days after South Korea watched in shock as armed soldiers broke into the Assembly grounds late Tuesday, about an hour after the president declared martial law. In order to pass, the Democratic Party of Korea-led bill needed just eight votes from the ruling People Po

Politics Dec. 7, 2024

Hong Jang-won, the former first deputy director of the National Intelligence Service, claims he was snubbed when he informed Cho Tae-yong, the NIS director, that President Yoon Suk Yeol asked for the spy agency to cooperate with the military in arresting political leaders on the night of martial law. Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Park Sun-won on Saturday shared with reporters the text of a KakaoTalk messenger conversation he had with Hong earlier the same day, in which the former NIS deputy dir

Politics Dec. 7, 2024

Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the ruling People Power Party, said Saturday an early end to President Yoon Suk Yeol’s term was “unavoidable,” but he did not specifically mention impeachment. Speaking to reporters immediately after Yoon’s address to the nation at 10 a.m., Han said the president was “in a situation where he is unable to perform his normal duties as a president.” “An early end to the president’s term appears unavoidable,” he said.

Politics Dec. 7, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Saturday apologized to the South Korean people for the public concern he caused by declaring martial law. In a televised address to the nation, he said he would entrust the running of the country to the ruling party and the government. Yoon also promised that there would not be another declaration of martial law. "I imposed martial law at 11 p.m. on Dec. 3 and ordered troops to leave and lifted it in a Cabinet meeting at around 1 a.m. Wednesday after the parliamen

Politics Dec. 7, 2024

President Yoon Suk Yeol will deliver an address to the nation at 10 a.m. Saturday, four days after he declared martial law Tuesday.

Politics Dec. 7, 2024

Three commanders accused of direct involvement in President Yoon Suk Yeol’s declaration of martial law have been suspended from active duty as of 4 p.m. Friday, the Ministry of National Defense said. They are: Defense Counterintelligence Commander Yeo In-hyung, Special Warfare Commander Kwak Jong-geun and Capital Defense Commander Lee Jin-woo. The Defense Ministry said the commanders have been put on standby for assignment. The Defense Ministry also asked the Ministry of Justice to ban Yeo

Politics Dec. 6, 2024

Cho Tae-yong, the director of the National Intelligence Service, said President Yoon Suk Yeol did not give the spy agency any orders about arresting politicians. Cho denied claims raised by Hong Jang-won, the NIS deputy director, who said the president told him to arrest politicians. “I would like to make it very clear that the president has not asked the NIS director to arrest politicians. The president has not given orders for an arrest before or after the martial law declaration,”

Politics Dec. 6, 2024

National Intelligence Service agents have been banned from entering National Assembly buildings in the aftermath of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s martial law declaration. Several sources told The Korea Herald on Friday the National Assembly Secretariat has banned NIS agents from accessing parliament buildings starting Wednesday, along with the police and the Ministry of National Defense officials. The entry passes for NIS agents have been suspended accordingly, sources said. The decision to ba

한국어판 Dec. 6, 2024

Senior Ministry of National Defense and Joint Chiefs of Staff officials said Friday the military would defy any further attempts to enact martial law, should President Yoon Suk Yeol decide to declare it a second time. Earlier reports that the military was preparing for another declaration of martial law are “completely false,” a senior Defense Ministry official said. “If there ever is a call for declaring martial law once again, the Defense Ministry and the Joint Chiefs of Staf

Politics Dec. 6, 2024