South Korean prosecutors seek arrest warrant for chief of Army Special Warfare Command in martial law probe

Seoul (The Uttam Hindu): South Korea's prosecutors on Sunday sought an arrest warrant for the head of the Army Special Warfare Command over his role in President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived imposition of martial law.

Lt. Gen. Kwak Jong-keun is accused of sending troops to the National Assembly when martial law was imposed on December 3, and allegedly colluding with Yoon and former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun to incite a riot to subvert the Constitution.

Prosecutors sought the arrest warrant on charges of insurrection and abuse of power.

The National Assembly voted on Saturday to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol over his botched imposition of martial law, suspending him from his duties until the Constitutional Court decides whether to reinstate him or remove him from office, with citizens cheering over his impeachment.

The impeachment motion against Yoon passed 204-85, with three abstentions and eight invalid ballots, after all 300 members of the Assembly cast their votes.

The motion's passage came 11 days after Yoon declared martial law in an announcement that caught the nation by surprise and drew outrage, as troops encircled the National Assembly compound in an apparent attempt to stop lawmakers from repealing the decree.

The martial law order, which was lifted within six hours of the Assembly's vote, has prompted investigations by the police, the prosecution, and the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials into whether Yoon staged an insurrection. He is currently banned from leaving the country.

In a televised address from his residence, Yoon said he is 'pausing momentarily' but will not stop the journey he began with the people toward the future.

"I will never give up," he said. "I will embrace all the censure, encouragement and support directed at me and do my best for the nation until the end."

Yoon was suspended from his duties at 7:24 pm, the moment the impeachment resolution was delivered to his office and about 2 1/2 hours after the impeachment motion passed.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo immediately began his duties as the acting president and convened a Cabinet meeting at the government complex in Seoul, Yonhap news agency reported.

"The most important mission at this moment is to swiftly stabilise the confusion in state affairs and return to the people their precious everyday lives," he said in opening remarks, instructing all public officials to stay on task, establish a strong security posture and monitor the economy in real time.

In a separate address to the nation, he apologised once again for the current state of affairs while promising the government's best efforts to minimise its impact on people's everyday lives.

He also later convened the National Security Council and called for maintaining a 'watertight readiness posture' against North Korea's provocations.