A Seoul court on Thursday sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol to life imprisonment, finding him guilty of leading a rebellion in connection with the imposition of martial law in 2024, LETA reported citing AFP.
"The declaration of martial law had enormous social consequences, and it is difficult to find any signs that the accused expressed remorse about this," said presiding judge Chi Kwi-yeon.
"We sentence Yoon to life imprisonment," the judge confirmed.
On the evening of December 3, 2024, then-President Yoon unexpectedly declared martial law for the first time since the 1980s, sending troops and helicopters to the parliament. On the morning of December 4, the president revoked the martial law after all present members of the National Assembly urged him to make this decision. This also triggered mass protests.
On December 14, 2024, the parliament impeached Yoon, and in April 2025, the Constitutional Court officially removed him from office. On January 19, 2025, Yoon was arrested in connection with the brief imposition of martial law, but was released from pre-trial detention on March 8. He was re-arrested last July.
