In an escalating fight over the political direction of South Korea, President Yoon Suk Yeol triggered the country’s biggest political crisis in decades by abruptly declaring martial law Dec. 3. His goal was to ban all opposition political activity. This was the first time the country faced imposition of rule by the armed forces since the military dictatorship, which U.S. forces had put in place, ended in the late 1980s.
Yoon backtracked six hours later after mass protests erupted demanding his resignation. Yoon’s own party joined opposition parliamentarians in voting unanimously against martial law. South Korea’s trade unions, above, joined the protests in central Seoul and called for an open-ended general strike. Washington has postponed joint military exercises with South Korea scheduled for later this week.