South Korea declares martial law for first time in 50
Gergana Krasteva
FILE - In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, left, supervises artillery firing drills in North Korea, on March 7, 2024. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)
South Korea’s president accused the opposition of sympathising with North Korea (Picture: AP)
For the first in almost half a decade, South Korea has today declared an ’emergency martial law’ over a threat from North Korea.
President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday said he had no choice but to resort to such a measure to safeguard free and constitutional order.
He accused opposition parties for allegedly taking hostage of parliament to throw the country into a crisis and for sympathising with North Korea.
‘I declare martial law to protect the free Republic of Korea from the threat of North Korean communist forces, to eradicate the despicable pro-North Korean anti-state forces that are plundering the freedom and happiness of our people, and to protect the free constitutional order,’ he said.
The president did not say in the shock announcement – broadcast live on national television – what specific measures will be taken.
He declared the step as critical for defending the country’s constitutional order.
It was not immediately clear how the steps would affect governance and democracy.
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