President Yoon Suk Yeol under arrest warrant after failed attempt to impose martial law

Police face protesters opposing the court’s approval of an arrest warrant for South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul, December 31, 2024. SOO-HYEON KIM/REUTERS Thirty -three hours after his request, the arrest warrant against South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was issued on Tuesday, December 31, by a South Korean court to force him to appear before investigators, who want to question him about his failed attempt to impose martial law. “The arrest warrant and search warrant against President Yoon Suk Yeol (…) were issued this morning,” the entity leading the joint investigation into him said in a statement. “No timetable has been established for the continuation of the procedures,” she added. “The arrest warrant and the search and seizure warrant issued at the request of an agency that does not have investigative authority are illegal and invalid,” quickly denounced Yoon Kab-keun, Mr.’s lawyer. Yoon, in a press release sent to Agence France-Presse (AFP). Yoon Suk Yeol’s legal team then filed for an injunction to overturn it. This is the first time in South Korean history that a sitting president has been the subject of an arrest warrant, with Yoon Suk Yeol still officially in office pending a ruling by the Constitutional Court on his dismissal, adopted on December 14 by the National Assembly. He is currently suspended from office, with the Court expected to confirm or overturn his dismissal by mid-June. Ban on leaving the territory Mr. Yoon stunned the country on December 3 by proclaiming martial law by surprise and sending the army to Parliament in order to muzzle it. He was forced to back down before dawn the next day under pressure from deputies and thousands of demonstrators. He is under investigation, notably for “rebellion”, a crime theoretically punishable by death, and is prohibited from leaving the territory. The 64-year-old former star prosecutor three times rejected summons to be questioned about his coup, leading to the request on Monday for an arrest warrant against him. An official from the high-ranking corruption investigation office on Tuesday cited Mr. Yoon’s repeated refusals to justify this request. “The warrant is valid until January 6,” he said during a press briefing, specifying that the ousted president could be taken to a police station or to the Seoul detention center. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers The memory of the Gwangju massacre at the heart of the mobilization against martial law in South Korea Read later Even if an arrest warrant has been issued, it is not certain that the authorities can actually act, Yoon Suk Yeol’s security services having already obstructed three searches, even though on warrant. “But they will probably coordinate with the investigation team upstream for the application” of the warrant, lawyer Yun Bok-nam told AFP, saying he expected a “fluid” process. The presidential guard, for its part, assured that it would act “in compliance with legal procedures”, in a press release sent to local media. The IOC also announced a search Tuesday at the headquarters of the military counterintelligence command as part of the martial law investigation. Le Monde Mémorable Test your general knowledge with the editorial staff of “Le Monde” Test your general knowledge with the editorial staff of “Le Monde” Discover Tuesday mid-afternoon, hundreds of people gathered in front of Mr. Yoon’s residence in central Seoul, mostly supporters chanting “Martial law, legal; impeachment, invalid” and waving South Korean and American flags. The police were also on site and told demonstrators to stay away to avoid clashes, noted an AFP photographer. Clashes between demonstrators for and against the president Technically, any person opposing the execution of an arrest warrant can be arrested. On the night of the short-lived martial law, Mr. Yoon authorized the army to open fire to force the entrance to Parliament and drag out elected officials who had gathered there in an emergency, according to a report of ten pages from the prosecution. Yoon Kab-keun, his lawyer, criticized on Monday a “biased report which is in agreement neither with objective circumstances nor with common sense”. On the evening of his coup, Yoon Suk Yeol justified his shock decision by his desire to protect South Korea from “North Korean communist forces” and to “eliminate elements hostile to the State”, accusing the majority opposition in Parliament to block the country. A sufficient number of MPs managed to vote for the lifting of martial law and Mr. Yoon had to repeal it, constrained by the Constitution. According to the prosecutor’s report, he discussed this plan with senior military officials as early as March. Read also | In South Korea: President Yoon had authorized the army to shoot at Parliament Read later South Korea has, since December 3, been plunged into political chaos which continued with the dismissal on Friday by the Assembly of interim president, Han Duck-soo, accused of obstructing investigations against Yoon Suk Yeol. Another first in the country’s history. Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok took over as second replacement and soon found himself faced with disaster, with Sunday’s plane crash in Muan killing 179 of the 181 passengers. , the worst air accident on South Korean soil. Read also | Article reserved for our subscribers In South Korea, political chaos intensifies with the disputed dismissal of the interim president Read later Le Monde with AFP Reuse this content



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