A senior South Korean military officer has testified in court that he was asked how to cut electricity to parliament during last year’s failed martial law attempt by impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol.
Colonel Kim Hyun-tae, the head of South Korea’s elite 707th Special Mission Group, made the revelation during a hearing at the Constitutional Court on Thursday.
Kim stated that his superior, former Special Warfare Command Chief General Kwak Jong-keun, asked him whether troops could storm the parliament building using “tasers and blank ammunition.” Kim responded, saying it was not feasible.
Kim had been tasked with overseeing the deployment of special forces troops to prevent lawmakers from overturning Yoon’s sudden martial law order on December 3, 2024. The decree suspended civilian rule and sent soldiers into parliament, triggering political chaos.
Yoon, who was arrested and suspended from office in mid-January on charges of insurrection, remained stoic during the court proceedings, occasionally closing his eyes as he listened to the testimony.
He defended his decision to declare martial law, claiming it was necessary to “safeguard constitutional order” from what he described as “anti-state elements.”
However, his attempt to cling to power lasted just six hours before opposition lawmakers defied the military’s intervention. Parliamentary staff reportedly blocked special forces from entering the assembly by barricading doors with chairs and desks.
Kim testified that General Kwak had asked him, “Is there any way to get in, such as by shutting down the power?” in an attempt to prevent lawmakers from achieving a quorum to nullify the decree.
Yoon has denied ordering military commanders to physically remove lawmakers from parliament. However, General Kwak contradicted this, testifying that Yoon had indeed instructed him to extract MPs to block the vote.
The Constitutional Court is currently deliberating on whether to uphold Yoon’s impeachment. If upheld, South Korea will hold a by-election within 60 days to elect a new president.
Meanwhile, Yoon remains in detention as part of a separate criminal investigation into his actions, marking the first time in South Korean history that a sitting president has been arrested.
