Madar (International) - South Korea's special prosecution team led by Cho Eun-suk renewed its demand on Thursday, October 29, 2026, for the death penalty for former President Yoon Suk-yeol over his failed attempt to impose martial law, at an appeal hearing at the Seoul High Court, Al Jazeera English reported, citing The Associated Press.
Yoon was sentenced to life imprisonment in February after being convicted of leading an insurrection. Prosecutors had also sought the death penalty at his original trial in January.
A prosecutor told the court there was "no reason to hesitate" over imposing the death penalty, according to South Korea's Yonhap news agency. South Korea retains capital punishment but has not carried out an execution since 1997, which prosecutors argued should not stop the judges from handing down a death sentence.
Yoon declared martial law on December 3, 2024, deploying soldiers and police to the National Assembly. Lawmakers overcame a security blockade to vote down the measure, forcing the government to withdraw it about six hours later. The lower court found that he had tried to stop parliament from functioning, detain political opponents and stay in control for an extended period.
His lawyers said he had intended to warn the opposition-controlled parliament against what he saw as obstruction of his government, not to establish authoritarian rule. Yoon himself denied seeking a long-term dictatorship at a hearing on October 27, the Hankyoreh newspaper reported.
Parliament impeached Yoon in December 2024, and the Constitutional Court removed him from office in April 2025. The appeals court plans two more hearings, including Yoon's final statement on November 5.
