South Korean prosecutors demand death penalty for ex-leader Yoon

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00:00Once embraced by world leaders, the ex-president of South Korea, Yoon Suk-yul, now faces the ultimate punishment.

00:09A special counsel has asked a court in Seoul to sentence Yoon to death after he imposed martial law on the country on December 3rd of 2024.

00:18The state of martial law only lasted six hours because the South Korean National Assembly quickly voted it down

00:25and citizens flooded the streets in protest and clashed with the military.

00:34Amid a huge public outcry, Yoon was later impeached, removed from office and arrested,

00:40with prosecutors claiming he had conspired with military leaders to take over the legislature

00:45and to detain his political enemies, accusations he denies.

00:50In addition to insurrection charges, Yoon also faces criminal accusations of corruption, trading favors and rebellion.

00:59He's also accused of ordering drones to fly over North Korea to provoke Pyongyang as a pretext to declaring martial law.

01:07His wife, the former First Lady Kim Gung-hee, is also in legal hot water.

01:12She's on trial for corruption, accused of bribery and accepting luxury gifts, facing a possible sentence of 15 years in prison,

01:19and is due to be sentenced later this month.

01:22As for Yoon, the court is expected to hand down its verdict in the coming weeks.

01:27Experts say even if he's sentenced to death, it's unlikely that he'll be executed.

01:31He'll rather spend his life in prison, given that South Korea hasn't carried out an execution since 1997.

01:38Hoorayah!

01:39Go on!

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