South Korea Supreme Court Upholds 7-Year Sentence for Former President Yoon

South Korea’s Supreme Court on Thursday affirmed a seven‑year prison term for former President Yoon Suk‑yeol, upholding convictions for obstruction of justice and related offenses connected to his 2024 declaration of martial law. The court’s ruling confirms the lower courts’ findings that Yoon’s actions exceeded legal authority and disrupted constitutional processes, leading to his removal from office and subsequent criminal prosecution.

Yoon has maintained that the martial‑law proclamation was intended to serve the public interest, arguing that it was a necessary response to a perceived national emergency. Nonetheless, the Supreme Court’s decision underscores the judiciary’s stance that the declaration was unlawful and that the former president’s conduct warranted the imposed sentence. The verdict closes the highest‑level criminal proceedings against Yoon, marking a definitive legal resolution to the controversy surrounding the 2024 martial‑law episode.