Yoon’s trial enters final stage, verdict expected in March

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment trial enters its final stage this week, with just two formal hearings remaining, as those in legal circles generally expect the verdict to come in mid-March. The Constitutional Court will hold the seventh and eighth hearings on Tuesday and Thursday, questioning eight witnesses. While further hearings may be scheduled, it is likely that the court will conclude proceedings by the end of this month and issue a decision on Yoon’s impeachment next month. On Monda

Feb. 10, 2025

Police investigate alleged online plot to storm Constitutional Court

Police kicked off a probe Saturday into members of an online community, already under investigation in connection with an attack on a lower court, who are now suspected of conspiring to break into the Constitutional Court of Korea. According to the police, they are currently tracking down individuals who posted on online community DC Inside’s “US Politics Gallery” about planning violent acts at the Constitutional Court. Posts included uploading the floor plan of the Constitutional Court, where h

Feb. 9, 2025

Seoul city to offer W1m to couples who register marriage

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Sunday that newlyweds who register their marriage in the city will be offered 1 million won ($685) in cash, or an equivalent amount of cash points that can be used in local communities, starting from October. The plan is to support the newlyweds with subsidy in purchasing living appliances and furniture needed as they move into the house together, the city government said. Authorities said that they are currently in talks with the Ministry of Health and Wel

Feb. 9, 2025

Ex-commander hits back at denials, says order was to drag out lawmakers

Kwak says he decided to pull troops out of Assembly, not president or ex-defense minister The then-commander of the South Korean military's special forces testified at the Constitutional Court on Thursday that President Yoon Suk Yeol had ordered him to drag out the lawmakers from the National Assembly on the night of Yoon's sudden Dec. 3 martial law declaration, contradicting the president’s claim. Lt. Gen. Kwak Jong-geun, then-head of the Army Special Warfare Command, said he was told by Yoon t

Feb. 6, 2025

Fierce debate unfolds at Yoon’s trial over ‘arrest memo’

President Yoon Suk Yeol and a former spy agency deputy director exchanged fierce comments and contradicting recollections of a phone call at the fifth hearing of Yoon’s impeachment trial that ended late Tuesday night. Hong Jang-won, who was the No. 2 at the National Intelligence Service, claimed to have written down a list of politicians to arrest during a phone call with Yeo In-hyung, who was then commander of the Defense Counterintelligence Command, on the night of Dec. 3, 2024. According to H

Feb. 5, 2025

Ex-spy agency deputy director testifies that Yoon ordered him to arrest politicians

Yoon should have apologized to the people: Hong Hong Jang-won, former first deputy director of the National Intelligence Service and the third witness in the fifth hearing of President Yoon Suk Yeol’s impeachment trial on Tuesday, testified that Yoon called him on the night of the Dec. 3 martial law declaration and instructed him to arrest politicians. Hong, disclosing that he was given a list of some 14 individuals to be arrested during the Dec. 3 operation through a phone call with former Defe

Feb. 4, 2025

'Can't fully recall' what happened on Dec. 3, say ex-military chiefs at Yoon's trial

Two former key military commanders decline to answer on night of martial law citing concerns over their ongoing criminal trials Two of South Korea's top ex-military commanders declined to comment on the situation on the night of Yoon Suk Yeol's botched Dec. 3 martial law declaration, while testifying at the fifth hearing of the suspended president's impeachment trial on Tuesday. Although they declined to answer many of the questions from both the National Assembly’s side and Yoon’s legal team, c

Feb. 4, 2025

Seoul Mayor highlights city safety for foreign travelers

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon on Tuesday again moved to assure foreign tourists that the city remained safe, emphasizing the municipality’s commitment to safety and openness amid ongoing political turmoil following last year’s martial law declaration. "Korean society is a resilient one. Political turmoil is being resolved in an orderly manner, and judicial procedures are being carried out with great discipline. As a result, the tourism industry is gaining significant momentum, especially as foreigners

Feb. 4, 2025

Court delays ruling on legality of acting president's refusal to appoint justice

Postponing a decision, court says failure of acting president to comply with its ruling would violate Constitution, law The Constitutional Court of Korea on Monday postponed a ruling on whether acting President Choi Sang-mok violated the Constitution or infringed on the National Assembly's authority by not appointing Ma Eun-hyeok as a Constitutional Court justice. The delay in its ruling will maintain the court's current eight-member structure as it proceeds with the impeachment trial of Preside

Feb. 3, 2025

Constitutional Court reiterates: Personal views do not influence impeachment ruling

The Constitutional Court of Korea said in a briefing Friday that impeachment trials are not influenced by the personal inclinations of justices, countering claims from the ruling party questioning some of the justices' impartiality. The court’s press officer, Cheon Jae-hyun, said that impeachment trials only focus on whether a defendant's actions violated the Constitution or the law, along with the severity of such violations. “(Justices’) judgments are made through the objective application of

Jan. 31, 2025