The lawyers for a former South Korean defence minister under investigation on insurrection charges said on Thursday a short-lived martial law decree imposed earlier this month was to raise alarm on opposition parties' abuse of the democratic process.

South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol again declined to appear for questioning by investigators over his martial law declaration as the embattled leader seeks to first defend himself at an impeachment trial.

The Constitutional Court will decide whether to remove Yoon sometime in the next six months. If he is removed from office, a snap election will be called.

Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol likely kept the United States in the dark about his plan to declare martial law to avoid interference, the National Assembly speaker said.

Embattled South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol saw his approval rating sink to a record low of 11% on Friday ahead of a second impeachment motion over his short-lived declaration of martial law.

When South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol cited claims of election hacking and "anti-state" pro-North Korean sympathisers as justification for imposing a short-lived martial law, right-wing YouTuber Ko Sung-kook had heard it before.

South Korea’s main opposition party has submitted a motion to impeach the country’s acting leader over his reluctance to fill three Constitutional Court vacancies ahead of the court’s review of rebellion charges against impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol stemming from his short-lived martial law decree on Dec.

South Korea's opposition said Thursday it filed an impeachment motion against acting president Han Duck-soo, in an escalating dispute over the composition of the Constitutional Court which would decide whether to remove his predecessor from office.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol failed to appear before law enforcement authorities for questioning on Wednesday - the second time he has ignored a summons over his attempt to impose martial law.