General
South Korean Leader Declares Martial Law in Fight With Political Opposition
President Yoon Suk Yeol evoked a threat posed by ‘anti-state’ forces, and criticized attempts by the opposition to impeach him.
President Yoon Suk Yeol of South Korea declared emergency martial law on Tuesday, accusing the opposition of plotting “insurgency” and “trying to overthrow the free democracy.”
It was the first time a South Korean president had declared martial law since the military dictatorship ended in the country in the late 1980s. Mr. Yoon, who was elected president in 2022, has been in a near-constant political standoff with the opposition, which controls Parliament.
In a nationally televised speech on Tuesday night, Mr. Yoon denounced the opposition for repeatedly using its majority in the National Assembly to impeach members of his cabinet and block the passage of his government’s budget plans.
This has “paralyzed the administration,” Mr. Yoon said. “The National Assembly, which should have been the foundation of free democracy, has become a monster that destroys it.”
This is a developing story.
