Seoul: A Seoul Central District Court has sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol to life imprisonment for sedition and abuse of power following his attempt to declare martial law in December 2024. The decision marks a significant moment in South Korean legal history, attracting widespread national attention.

According to Thai News Agency, the court determined that Yoon's directive to deploy military forces to encircle the parliament was a definitive act of treason, aimed at disrupting the legislative process and violating constitutional principles. Prosecutors had pushed for the death penalty, citing the severe impact on the nation's democratic framework. However, the court opted for life imprisonment, the most severe punishment available under South Korean statutes aside from the death penalty.

The verdict was delivered in a live broadcast watched by citizens across the country, reflecting the intense public interest in the trial. The former president, now 65, has been in detention since the martial law crisis and was present during the court proceedings. The case has highlighted the ongoing political divisions within South Korean society.

Despite the country's last execution occurring in 2016, South Korea has effectively maintained a moratorium on the death penalty, with no executions carried out since 1997.