A protester holds a placard showing a photo of South Korea's impeached former president Yoon Suk Yeol reading "A death sentence" during a rally against Yoon near the Seoul Central District Court in Seoul on Feb. 19.
A South Korean court found ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol guilty of insurrection on Thursday and sentenced him to life in prison, saying his martial law declaration in December 2024 was a plot to "paralyse" the National Assembly.
Yoon abruptly declared martial law in a televised address in December 2024, saying drastic measures were needed to root out "anti-state forces".
Presiding judge Ji Gwi-yeon said Yoon dispatched troops to the assembly building in an effort to silence his political opponents.
"The Court finds that the intention was to paralyse the assembly for a considerable period," Ji told Seoul Central District Court.
"The declaration of martial law resulted in enormous social costs, and it is difficult to find any indication that the defendant has expressed remorse for that," the judge said.
"We sentence Yoon to life imprisonment."
