Yoon Suk Yeol, South Korea's president, arrives for a proceeding astatine the Constitutional Court of Korea successful Seoul, South Korea, connected Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
To warrant a lawsuit for martial law, erstwhile President Yoon Suk Yeol tried to provoke neighboring North Korea into taking subject action, South Korean prosecutors alleged Monday, according to home media.
Speaking to reporters, peculiar counsel Cho Eun-suk said that Yoon and his subject commanders tried to lure North Korea into mounting an equipped aggression against the South, but this failed arsenic Pyongyang did not edifice to subject force.
Cho and his squad person indicted 24 people, including Yoon and 5 furniture members, connected insurrection charges pursuing a six-month investigation.
Earlier this month, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung had said connected the 1-year day of Yoon's short-lived martial instrumentality declaration that North Korea sending of trash balloons over to South Korea mightiness person been provoked by Seoul's actions, though helium did not elaborate astatine that time.
Lee had besides vowed "strict accountability" for the perpetrators down the failed martial instrumentality attempt, with investigations and trials inactive underway.
In July, Reuters reported that the peculiar counsel had sought to detain the caput of a subject drone unit, implicit accusations that Yoon had ordered a covert drone cognition into North Korea to rise tensions betwixt the 2 countries.
Cho besides said that Yoon had masterminded a program successful October 2023 to suspend the powers of South Korea's parliament and regenerate it with an exigency legislative body.
South Korean media outlet Yonhap besides reported that Yoon besides sought to represent the April 2024 wide predetermination results, mislaid by his ruling party, arsenic electoral fraud led by anti-state forces.
The 2024 election saw the then-opposition Democratic Party, led by Lee, clasp connected to its bulk successful the National Assembly.
After being removed from bureau successful April, Yoon has been charged with insurrection, which carries the maximum punishment of death.
South Korean prosecutors person besides reportedly sought a 15-year situation term for erstwhile Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. Other elder officials, including Yoon's defence curate and the erstwhile caput of the National Intelligence Service, person besides been arrested successful transportation with the effort to enforce subject rule.
On Dec. 3 past year, Yoon had abruptly declared martial instrumentality successful a precocious nighttime address, earlier lawmakers — including members of Yoon's ain enactment — rushed to overturn his order. Yoon withdrew his decree six hours aft his announcement.
Imposing martial instrumentality led to impeachment motions against Yoon, which resulted successful him being impeached connected Dec. 14 past twelvemonth and removal from office connected April 4.
English (US) ·