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PoliticsLawConflict

Martial law in South Korea

A president declares martial law at night and parliament votes it down within six hours.

When
Duration
1 day
Known to
± 30 minutes
Era
Contemporary, Holocene
Where
Seoul, South Korea · 37.5326° N, 126.9145° E

Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law on the evening of 3 December 2024, the first since democratisation in 1987. Lawmakers climbed fences to reach the National Assembly and voted 190-0 to lift it before dawn as troops entered the building. Yoon was impeached, removed by the Constitutional Court in April 2025 and later charged with insurrection.

Just before

Just after