South Korean court approves arrest warrant for President Yoon Suk Yeol

A South Korean court on Tuesday approved an arrest warrant for President Yoon Suk Yeol, who was stripped of his presidential powers just weeks ago over his short-lived martial law decree that threw the country into political chaos.

This is the first time a sitting South Korean president has faced an arrest warrant granted by a court.

South Korea’s parliament voted to impeach Yoon on December 14 in an extraordinary rebuke that came about after his own ruling party turned on him following his refusal to resign.

South Korea’s anti-corruption agency said the Seoul Western District Court granted the warrant for Yoon, who is facing a probe on charges of abuse of authority and orchestrating a rebellion after he announced martial law on December 3.

The arrest warrant was issued after Yoon, a former prosecutor, had refused to answer three summonses by investigators in recent weeks asking for his cooperation, according to the Corruption Investigation Office (CIO).

The CIO said an arrest warrant must usually be executed within seven days but can be extended.

This is a developing story.