SEOUL – Former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after a court found him guilty of orchestrating military drone incursions into North Korea as part of an alleged plan to create conditions that would justify his failed declaration of martial law in December 2024.
According to South Korea’s Seoul Central District Court, Yoon was convicted on charges including abuse of power and aiding the enemy after prosecutors successfully argued that he authorised a military drone operation over Pyongyang in October 2024. The court ruled that the operation was intended to heighten tensions with North Korea and create a security crisis that could later be used as a pretext for imposing martial law.
Reuters reported that the court found Yoon had conspired in the drone incursion “from the outset”, while special prosecutors alleged the operation was aimed at fabricating wartime conditions. The prosecution argued that the flights endangered national security and risked exposing sensitive military information after some of the drones reportedly crashed inside North Korea.
The sentence marks the latest legal setback for the ousted conservative leader, whose December 3, 2024 martial law declaration plunged South Korea into its most severe political crisis in decades. The order, which lasted only a few hours before being overturned by lawmakers, triggered mass protests, impeachment proceedings and multiple criminal investigations.
Yoon has consistently denied wrongdoing. His legal team told the court that he neither ordered nor approved the drone operation and insisted the flights were a legitimate response to months of North Korean provocations, including the launch of rubbish-filled balloons across the border. They rejected claims that the operation was linked to plans for martial law.
The latest ruling comes on top of a life sentence imposed on Yoon earlier this year after he was convicted of leading an insurrection related to the martial law attempt. Prosecutors had previously sought a 30-year prison term in the drone case, arguing that the former president deliberately attempted to provoke a confrontation with North Korea to strengthen his grip on power.
Associated Press reported that former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun was also sentenced to 30 years in prison in connection with the drone operation. Prosecutors alleged the pair worked together to provoke a North Korean response that could be used to justify extraordinary security measures.
Yoon, who was removed from office after South Korea’s Constitutional Court upheld his impeachment, remains in custody and is expected to appeal the latest verdict. The country’s political landscape has since shifted, with President Lee Jae Myung taking office following a snap election held after Yoon’s removal.
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