Chaos has continued to surround South Korea, which finds itself in an unusual situation. While President Yoon Suk Yeol declared a state of war, the parliament convened urgently and voted to declare the president’s decision invalid.
The vote took place under highly abnormal circumstances, with the parliament surrounded by large numbers of police and military forces after Yoon Suk Yeol’s decision.
According to South Korean law, the government must annul the state of war if the majority of the National Assembly calls for it through a vote. The same law also prevents the military command from ordering the arrest of parliament members.
Hours earlier, Yoon Suk Yeol, in an unscheduled televised speech, declared martial law, claiming it would eliminate “anti-state, pro-North Korean forces.” This marks the first time since 1980 that South Korea has declared martial law.
“I am declaring martial law to protect the free Republic of Korea from the threat of communist forces from North Korea, to eliminate the despicable anti-state forces pro-North Korean that are plundering the freedom and happiness of our people, and to protect the constitution,” said Yoon Suk Yeol, President of South Korea.
