South Korea’s governing party leader calls for suspension of Yoon’s powers
Al JazeeraThe head of South Korea’s governing party has called for the swift suspension of President Yoon Suk-yeol’s powers, citing “credible evidence” that he sought the arrest of political leaders following his short-lived declaration of martial law. People Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon, who had earlier said he would oppose efforts to impeach Yoon, said on Friday that “newly emerging facts” had tipped the scales against the president. “But based on what has been revealed, to protect South Korea and our people, I believe it is necessary to stop President Yoon from exercising his powers as president promptly.” Han said Yoon had failed to acknowledge that his martial law declaration was illegal and wrong, and there was a “significant risk” that he could take similar extreme action again if he stayed in office. In a closed-door briefing to the chair of the National Assembly’s intelligence committee on Friday, a top official with the South Korean spy agency said Yoon had demanded the arrest of several high-profile legislators, including Han and Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myun, state-funded Yonhap News Agency reported.