'I am an incompetent and irresponsible commander': Special forces unit chief apologizes for sending troops to National Assembly

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'I am an incompetent and irresponsible commander': Special forces unit chief apologizes for sending troops to National Assembly

Published: 09 Dec. 2024, 11:00 Updated: 09 Dec. 2024, 16:29

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Kim Hyun-tae, commander of the 707th Special Missions Group, speaks during a press conference held at the War Memorial in Yongsan District, central Seoul on Monday. [YONHAP]

Commander of the 707th Special Missions Group said Monday that he would take full responsibility for dispatching troops to the National Assembly on Dec. 3 after emergency martial law was declared by President Yoon Suk Yeol, pleading for forgiveness on behalf of the soldiers.

The 707th Special Missions Group was one of the units that was dispatched to the National Assembly in western Seoul to block lawmakers from entering the building after martial law was declared on Dec. 3.

“I was the one who ordered the soldiers to head to the National Assembly and break the windows to enter,” said Kim Hyun-tae, commander of the 707th Special Missions Group, during a press conference held at the War Memorial in Yongsan District, central Seoul. “I will take responsibility for all the wrongdoings of 707th soldiers as their commander.”

Kim admitted that he ordered 197 unit members to the National Assembly to confront people blocking the entrance of the building.

“I am an incompetent and irresponsible commander. I pushed the unit to the brink,” Kim said. “The troops are not at fault. If they are guilty of anything, it is following the orders of an incapable commander.”

Describing the soldiers as "your sons and daughters who love this country," Kim said they are “the most pitiable victims used by former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun.”

Kim Yong-hyun tendered his resignation on Dec. 4, which President Yoon accepted the following day.

On Sunday, the military prosecution applied for an emergency travel ban on ten military personnel, including Kim Hyun-tae and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Park An-su.

BY WOO JI-WON [[email protected]]