South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been taken into custody at approximately 10:33 a.m. KST (8:33 p.m. ET) to face questioning over his controversial declaration of martial law on December 3, 2024.

The operation, which involved more than 1,000 personnel from multiple jurisdictions, follows a turbulent period of political instability stemming from the martial law declaration.

Despite his previous refusal to comply with summonses, Yoon has agreed to appear before the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) regarding the matter, maintaining that the investigation into his actions is illegal.

The arrest follows a sequence of dramatic political events triggered by Yoon’s martial law declaration. On December 14, the National Assembly voted to impeach Yoon, immediately suspending him from office. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo briefly assumed the role of acting president but was also impeached less than two weeks later.

Amid growing tensions, Park Jong-joon, the chief of presidential security, resigned on January 10, and Acting President Choi Sang-mok has called for bipartisan cooperation in launching an independent investigation into the martial law crisis.

The investigation into Yoon’s actions was previously blocked when security forces under the Presidential Security Service (PSS) prevented law enforcement from entering his residence in Seoul on January 3. That standoff lasted six hours before the CIO suspended its efforts.

However, in a marked shift, Defense Ministry spokesperson Lee Kyung-ho announced on Tuesday that troops assigned to guard the president's residence would no longer obstruct investigators.

The successful operation to detain Yoon this morning was carried out without incident, and no reports of violence or injuries have emerged. Meanwhile, South Korea’s Constitutional Court will proceed with a second hearing in Yoon’s impeachment trial on Friday, January 16, regardless of whether the president is present. (ILKHA)