Ex-military commander to testify at Yoon's impeachment trial over martial law allegations
Published: 06 Feb. 2025, 10:46
![Kwak Jong-keun, former chief of the Army Special Warfare Command, answers a question from a lawmaker at the National Assembly in Seoul on Feb. 4, during a hearing of a parliamentary special committee to probe into impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol's insurrection allegations in connection with his botched martial law declaration. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/02/06/b35c1c7b-8cc0-46ce-b907-14896b9cc5a3.jpg)
Kwak Jong-keun, former chief of the Army Special Warfare Command, answers a question from a lawmaker at the National Assembly in Seoul on Feb. 4, during a hearing of a parliamentary special committee to probe into impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol's insurrection allegations in connection with his botched martial law declaration. [YONHAP]
A former military commander who has accused President Yoon Suk Yeol of ordering the removal of lawmakers from the National Assembly building during December's brief imposition of martial law is set to testify at Yoon's impeachment trial Thursday.
Lt. Gen. Kwak Jong-keun, former chief of the Army Special Warfare Command, will be one of three witnesses called to testify at the trial's sixth formal hearing at the Constitutional Court.
Kwak has previously testified in parliament that Yoon called him on a secure line on the day he imposed martial law on Dec. 3 and ordered him to "drag out" lawmakers from inside the National Assembly building.
Then Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun testified during an earlier hearing that Yoon had in fact ordered the removal of "agents," not lawmakers, but Kwak refuted the claim this week, saying there were no agents inside the building at the time.
Col. Kim Hyun-tae, head of the 707th Special Mission Group, and senior presidential secretary for economic affairs Park Chun-sup are also set to testify.
Kim has acknowledged that 197 troops under his command were deployed to the National Assembly during the brief imposition of martial law.
Park is expected to be asked about the opposition party's push to cut the government budget, which Yoon's side has cited as one of the reasons martial law was declared.
Yoon is expected to attend the hearing.
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
To write comments, please log in to one of the accounts.
Standards Board Policy (0/250자)