Han Duck-soo sentenced to 23 years over role in 2024 martial law

Han Duck-soo, a former prime minister and acting president of South Korea, was sentenced to 23 years in prison on Wednesday after a three-judge panel at Seoul Central District Court convicted him of collaborating in former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s brief imposition of martial law, which the court called an insurrection.

The presiding judge, Lee Jin-kwan, read the nationally televised verdict and ordered Mr. Han’s formal arrest in the courtroom. Judge Lee said Mr. Yoon’s imposition of martial law was an act of insurrection that "could have pushed South Korea back into dictatorship" and found Mr. Han guilty of "playing a key role in an insurrection." Prosecutors had originally sought a 15-year term, but the court said Mr.

Han deserved a harsher punishment. The court found that Mr. Han, who was serving as Mr. Yoon’s handpicked prime minister when martial law was declared on the night of Dec. 3, 2024, played an active role in convening a cabinet meeting that night, helped fabricate a document to show proper procedures, collaborated in a plot to cut electricity and water to unfriendly broadcasters and newspapers, and committed perjury.

The martial law, which involved troops sent to the National Assembly and a raid on the National Election Commission without a court warrant, lasted six hours before the opposition-led Assembly voted it down and citizens resisted troop movements. Mr.

Key Topics

World, Han Duck-soo, Yoon Suk Yeol, South Korea, Martial Law, National Assembly