Ousted South Korean President Freed After Court Ruling

Former South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol was released from detention on Saturday after prosecutors complied with a court ruling that overturned his arrest.

The decision followed his impeachment over a sudden declaration of martial law.

Television footage showed Yoon leaving the detention center and heading to his residence in Seoul.

His release came a day after the Seoul Central District Court accepted his appeal, ruling that his arrest was unlawful. Prosecutors had seven days to challenge the decision but did not do so.

Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law in early December sent shockwaves through South Korea and the international community.

Anti-corruption prosecutors charged him with insurrection, and he still faces a criminal trial over the case.

Meanwhile, a separate ruling from the Constitutional Court is pending regarding the National Assembly’s decision to impeach him in December.

If the impeachment is upheld, South Korea will hold a snap presidential election within 60 days.

The 64-year-old ex-president has denied any wrongdoing, insisting that his actions were a desperate attempt to counter North Korea sympathizers who, he claimed, were working to paralyze his government.

He argued that he deployed troops to the National Assembly to maintain security and order—not to block lawmakers from overturning his martial law decree.

The political turmoil has rattled consumer confidence, destabilized financial markets, and disrupted high-level diplomacy. 

These challenges come at a critical time for South Korea’s trade-dependent economy, which is already under strain from rising tariffs imposed by then-US President Donald Trump.

Yoon’s dramatic arrest in January made him the first South Korean president to be detained and criminally charged with insurrection.

Since his suspension, Finance Minister Choi Sang Mok has been serving as acting president, following the removal of Prime Minister Han Duck Soo, who was initially appointed as Yoon’s temporary successor.

Yoon’s legal team maintained that his detention was unlawful, arguing that the court that issued his arrest warrant lacked jurisdiction and that he was indicted after his legal detention period had expired. 

Prosecutors, however, dismissed these claims, insisting they had followed due legal process.