A South Korean court on Friday annulled the arrest warrant for impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, paving the way for his release from prison. He was arrested in mid-January for a short period due to the imposition of martial law and charges of instigating rebellion, reports the Yonhap news agency here.
A representative of the Seoul Central District Court declined immediate comment. «The rule of law still exists in South Korea,» — Yoon's legal advisor commented, according to YTN television.
Yoon's immediate release and participation in the court proceedings outside the prison are expected, local media writes. Yoon’s lawyers argued that the arrest warrant issued on January 19th was invalid and claimed that the prosecutors had made errors in the request process.
On December 3rd, Yoon announced the imposition of martial law to eliminate «anti-state» elements, but rescinded this decision within six hours after it was rejected by the parliament. He has stated that he never intended to fully establish extraordinary military authority.
Several weeks later, the opposition-led parliament accused him of violating constitutional obligations and announced his impeachment. Yoon is currently involved in another criminal case and became the first sitting president to be arrested with criminal charges on January 15th.
Abdulloh Sayyid
