South Korea's President to appear in court to argue against his arrest
Yoon Suk Yeol (photo: Getty Images)
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who has been impeached, will appear at a Seoul court hearing later today. He will argue against his arrest over the martial law he declared in December, reports the Associated Press.
According to the lawyers of the suspended president, the hearing is scheduled for 14:00. During the hearing, Yoon will argue that there is no need for him to remain in custody during the investigation. A ruling is expected to be issued by the end of Saturday or early Sunday.
If the court approves Yoon's arrest, investigators will be able to continue holding him for up to 20 days, during which the case will be handed over to prosecutors for indictment. If the court rejects the investigators' request, Yoon will be released and return to his home.
Arrest of the suspended but sitting President of South Korea
Yoon, who has been in custody since his arrest on Wednesday, January 15, could be charged with rebellion due to his declaration of a state of emergency in the country on December 3. This decision by the president triggered the most serious political crisis in South Korea since its democratization in the late 1980s.
Then, in mid-December, the country's parliament declared Yoon's impeachment, after which two attempts to arrest him were made in January, as the court issued a corresponding warrant. The first attempt was unsuccessful, but the second time the president was indeed detained.
