South Korea ex-president sentenced to 30 years over drone incursion

A South Korean court has sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to 30 years in prison for ordering a drone incursion into North Korea in 2024, according to a report by Mehr News citing AFP. The Seoul Central District Court ruled that Yoon intended to provoke Pyongyang into carrying out armed or equivalent acts against South Korea's military or people, as per a summary of the ruling seen by AFP.

The judges stated that Yoon planned to "heighten inter-Korean military tensions and manufacture a national crisis" so that his subsequent declaration of martial law could be justified. The drone flights, which occurred two months before Yoon suspended civilian rule, had sparked anger in North Korea, which accused the South of dropping propaganda leaflets.

Yoon is currently in detention while he appeals a life sentence for leading an insurrection with his martial law declaration. He insists that he declared martial law "solely for the sake of the nation." His defense has also denied the charge over the drones, arguing that the operation was in response to North Korea sending balloons carrying trash across the border that year.

On Friday, the court's judges said the 2024 drone operation "entailed the use of South Korea's military capabilities for private purposes." They added that powers vested in the president, including supreme command of the armed forces and the authority to declare martial law, must be exercised to protect the nation's survival and security.

According to Mehr News, the report was based on information from AFP.