The News
Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol made his first appearance in court Tuesday to answer questions over his botched Dec. 3 martial law declaration. The Constitutional Court will ultimately decide whether to remove Yoon from the presidency, which would in turn trigger an election.
Yoon denied allegations he had ordered members of the military to remove lawmakers from parliament during the incident, while his legal team argued the martial law order was ”never intended to be executed.”
Yoon’s lawyers argued he had sought to draw attention to alleged abuses committed by the opposition Democratic Party. The declaration and Yoon’s subsequent weeks-long standoff with police has plunged the country into political crisis: Supporters of the embattled president rioted Sunday after a judge issued a warrant to extend his detention, and police surrounded the courthouse Tuesday to hold off hundreds of Yoon supporters who had gathered nearby, the BBC reported.