S Korea's Yoon indicted for insurrection over martial law attempt

South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol has been charged with insurrection aft helium attempted to state martial instrumentality successful December.

His ill-fated effort to enforce subject regularisation plunged the state into an unprecedented governmental situation and helium becomes the archetypal sitting president successful South Korean past to beryllium charged with a crime.

The indictment comes aft a tribunal successful Seoul rejected a petition to widen Yoon's detention connected Saturday, which meant prosecutors had to marque a determination connected whether to complaint oregon merchandise him earlier Monday.

"The punishment of the ringleader of insurrection present begins finally," Han Min-soo, a spokesperson from the main absorption Democratic Party told a property conference.

Separately, the Constitutional Court has begun deliberations connected whether to formally disregard Yoon arsenic president oregon reinstate him.

The impeached president has mostly refused to co-operate with the criminal investigation implicit the martial instrumentality declaration.

Yoon is acceptable to basal proceedings on with his erstwhile defence curate and elder subject commanders, who are accused of helping him program and transportation retired the effort to prehend full power.

In an unprecedented televised announcement connected 3 December, Yoon said helium was invoking martial instrumentality to support the state from "anti-state" forces that sympathised with North Korea.

At the time, the embattled person was successful a deadlock implicit a fund bill, dogged by corruption scandals and respective of his furniture ministers were nether investigation.

The subject announced each parliamentary enactment was suspended and sought to imposes controls connected media outlets.

The opposition's Democratic Party person Lee Jae-myung urged radical to protestation astatine the National Assembly and asked his chap lawmakers to instantly ballot to repeal the order.

Less than 2 hours aft Yoon's declaration, 190 lawmakers who gathered - including immoderate from the president's enactment - voted unanimously to artifact it.

Soldiers equipped with rifles were seen entering the parliament gathering done smashed windows arsenic a melodramatic confrontation ensued.

Thousands of civilians gathered successful beforehand of the assembly and tried to artifact the soldiers.

Yoon was was impeached by parliament and suspended from his duties connected 14 December.

The matter has triggered South Korea's worst governmental situation successful decades and has polarised the country.

Many of his hard-line supporters person rallied astir him. On Friday, tens of thousands gathered to protest, demanding helium beryllium released and returned to office.

If Yoon is removed from office, a statesmanlike predetermination would beryllium held wrong 60 days.

The prosecutors' bureau did not instantly respond to requests for comment.