Jauhn Etienne Villaruel

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol salutes after delivering his speech during a celebration to mark 76th anniversary of Korea Armed Forces Day, in Seongnam on October 1, 2024. Kim Hong-ji, Pool/AFP/File

Article (news)

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1771465673711Screen Shot 2026-02-19 at 9.47.39 AM.png" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol salutes after delivering his speech during a celebration to mark 76th anniversary of Korea Armed Forces Day, in Seongnam on October 1, 2024. Kim Hong-ji, Pool/AFP/File</span></span></span></div><div><br/></div><p>SEOUL, South Korea — A South Korean court will rule Thursday on insurrection charges against ex-president Yoon Suk Yeol, weighing whether he should be sentenced to death for his failed bid to impose military rule.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/1/14/south-korean-prosecutors-demand-death-penalty-for-ex-leader-yoon-0946">South Korean prosecutors demand death penalty for ex-leader Yoon</a></div><p>Yoon abruptly declared martial law in a televised address in December 2024, saying drastic measures were needed to root out &quot;anti-state forces&quot;.</p><p>The 65-year-old hardline conservative was later impeached, arrested and charged with a litany of crimes ranging from insurrection to obstruction of justice.</p><p>Prosecutors have sought the harshest penalty on the insurrection charges, urging the Seoul Central District Court to put Yoon on death row during hearings in January.</p><p>South Korea has an unofficial moratorium on capital punishment—the last prisoners were executed in 1997—with a death sentence effectively banishing Yoon to life behind bars.</p><p>Long seen as a shining light of stable democracy in Asia, Yoon&#x27;s failed bid to seize power stirred unpleasant memories of the military coups that jolted the nation between 1960 and 1980.</p><p>Millions of South Koreans are expected to come to a standstill when the court delivers its verdict in a live broadcast at 3pm (0600 GMT).</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/4/4/south-korea-court-upholds-president-yoon-s-impeachment-strips-him-of-office-1044">South Korea court upholds President Yoon&#x27;s impeachment, strips him of office</a></div><p>Yoon has been held in solitary confinement while fighting multiple criminal trials.</p><p>He has consistently denied wrongdoing, arguing he acted to &quot;safeguard freedom&quot; and restore constitutional order against what he called an opposition-led &quot;legislative dictatorship&quot;.</p><p>Prosecutors accused him of leading an &quot;insurrection&quot; driven by a &quot;lust for power aimed at dictatorship and long-term rule&quot;.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>LIFE, OR DEATH ROW</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Under South Korean law, only two sentences are fit for insurrection: life imprisonment or death.</p><p>A legal observer said the court would most likely sentence Yoon to life in prison.</p><p>&quot;In rare occasions, a judge could deliver what&#x27;s legally known as a &#x27;discretionary mitigation&#x27;, handing down a sentence lighter than the minimum penalty set by law if they believe it is warranted,&quot; attorney Yoo Jung-hoon told AFP.</p><p>&quot;But Yoon has neither pleaded guilty nor expressed remorse, so it will be hard for the panel of judges to give him anything lighter than a life term.&quot;</p><p>He has already been sentenced to five years in prison on lesser charges, while a host of senior officials also face hefty prison terms.</p><p>Yoon broke into late-night TV on December 3, 2024, to deliver a shock address to the nation.</p><p>Pointing to vague threats of North Korean influence and dangerous &quot;anti-state forces&quot;, he declared the suspension of civilian government and the start of military rule.</p><p>Martial law was lifted six hours later after lawmakers raced to the assembly building to hold an emergency vote.</p><p>Staffers barricaded the doors with office furniture to keep armed troops at bay.</p><p>The declaration triggered flash protests, sent the stock market into panic and caught key military allies such as the United States off guard.</p><p>Yoon&#x27;s wife Kim Keon Hee was sentenced to 20 months&#x27; jail earlier in January on unrelated charges stemming from bribes she took while first lady.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>RELATED VIDEO</strong></div><div><strong><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DichhIJNtdo?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span></strong><br/></div>

<p>Under South Korean law, only two sentences are fit for insurrection: life imprisonment or death.</p>

Under South Korean law, only two sentences are fit for insurrection: life imprisonment or death.

South Korea court weighs death sentence for ex-president Yoon

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South Korea court weighs death sentence for ex-president Yoon

Kang Jin-kyu,

Agence France-Presse

Published Feb 19, 2026 09:48 AM PHT

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Agence France-Presse

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