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South Korea’s Ex-President Yoon Gets Life Sentence for Insurrection Over 2024 Martial-Law Bid

Judges ruled his brief 2024 martial-law decree amounted to an insurrection.

Overview

  • A Seoul court found Yoon Suk-yeol guilty of leading an insurrection and abusing authority, imposing a life sentence after prosecutors had sought the death penalty.
  • On December 3, 2024, Yoon declared martial law and deployed security forces around the National Assembly; lawmakers broke through and unanimously revoked the decree in about six hours.
  • Parliament suspended Yoon days after the decree and formally removed him from office in 2025 ahead of the criminal trial.
  • Former defense minister Kim Yong-hyun was convicted in the same case and sentenced to 30 years for assisting the plan.
  • Yoon has argued his move targeted what he called opposition obstruction led by the Democratic Party.