For the first time in South Korea's history, a sitting president has been arrested.

Agency sources clarified that the court has authorized the arrest of Yoon Suk Yeol on three charges: abuse of power, unconstitutional attempt to impose martial law, and an attempted coup.

The arrest warrant was executed on the second attempt. On Wednesday morning, around 200 police officers and 40 investigators from the anti-corruption agency arrived at Yoon's residence to take him in for questioning. However, similar to the first time 12 days ago, they faced opposition from the presidential security service.

After about two and a half hours, overcoming three rows of barriers and using ladders, police and investigators managed to enter the building.

Yoon released a short video statement in which he asserted that he still considers the arrest unlawful, but decided to comply with the investigators and police to avoid bloodshed.

The Seoul court issued an arrest warrant for the president and authorized a search of his residence on December 31, 2024. This action followed Yoon's disregard for three summonses from the anti-corruption investigations office, which had called him in for questioning regarding high-ranking officials.

On December 14, the South Korean parliament supported the impeachment of the president on the second attempt. During the first vote, there were not enough votes to remove Yoon Suk Yeol from office.

The impeachment was triggered when on December 3, Yoon Suk Yeol announced the imposition of martial law "to combat internal supporters" of North Korea. The decree, which lasted six hours, banned the activities of political parties, protests, strikes, and introduced censorship and military field tribunals. This led to massive protests both on the streets of Seoul and in parliament. Legislators voted to overturn the president's decision during the military's storming of the building while it was happening. Following this, he was legally compelled to rescind the decree. On December 7, the president apologized for his actions on live television.

• Yoon Suk Yeol is a representative of the right-wing forces, traditionally tough on North Korea. He was elected president in 2022. The opposition Democratic Party's stance towards Pyongyang is more flexible.