To justify a case for martial law, former President Yoon Suk Yeol tried to provoke neighboring North Korea into taking military action, South Korean prosecutors alleged Monday, according to domestic media.
Speaking to reporters, special counsel Cho Eun-suk said that Yoon and his military commanders tried to lure North Korea into mounting an armed aggression against the South, but this failed as Pyongyang did not resort to military force.
Cho and his team have indicted 24 people, including Yoon and five cabinet members, on insurrection charges following a six-month investigation.
Earlier this month, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung had said on the 1-year anniversary of Yoon’s short-lived martial law declaration that North Korea sending of trash balloons over to South Korea might have been provoked by Seoul’s actions, although he did not elaborate at that time.
Lee had also vowed “strict accountability” for the perpetrators behind the failed martial law attempt, with investigations and trials still underway.
