Photos: Martial law ends in South Korea hours after president declared it
Scenes from inside and outside the National Assembly building in Seoul as people protested and lawmakers voted for martial law to end
ByH. Léo Kim and Cliff Owen for RFA
Police held back protesters as they gathered outside the National Assembly building in Seoul. Opposition party staff members erected a makeshift barricade of furniture to block soldiers from entering.
These were some of the scenes as martial law was declared in the country for the first time since 1980.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol ended martial law, just hours after he declared it to counter “threats from North Korea” and “anti-state activities” carried out by the country’s opposition party.
south-korea-martial-law-01 Soldiers advance to the main building of the National Assembly after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law in Seoul, Dec. 3, 2024. (Reuters via Yonhap) south-korea-martial-law-02 People gather in front of the main gate of the National Assembly in Seoul, on Dec. 4, 2024, after President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law. (Jung Yeon-Li/AFP) south-korea-martial-law-03 Police attempt to hold back people trying to enter the National Assembly in front of the main gate of the National Assembly in Seoul, on Dec. 3, 2024, after President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law. (Jung Yeon-Le/AFP) south-korea-martial-law-04 Police walk near the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 4, 2024, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law. (Anthony Wallace/AFP) south-korea-martial-law-05 South Korea's main opposition Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung (C) speaks to the media at the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 4, 2024, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law. (Jung Yeon-Le/AFP) south-korea-martial-law-06 Soldiers try to enter the National Assembly building in Seoul on Dec. 4 2024, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law. (Jung Yeon-Le/AFP) south-korea-martial-law-07 Military forces move outside the National Assembly, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-08 South Korea's main opposition Democratic Party's staff set up a barricade to block soldiers at the National Assembly after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law in Seoul, Dec. 3, 2024. (Yonhap via Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-09 Soldiers try to enter the main hall of the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 3, 2024, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law. (Yonhap via AFP) south-korea-martial-law-10 Police officers block protesters outside the National Assembly after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Yonhap via Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-11 Military forces stand outside the National Assembly, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-12 People gesture outside the National Assembly, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Soo-hyeon Kim/Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-13 A woman lies on a road to block a vehicle transporting an army unit, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-14 People block a martial law vehicle as they gather to demand South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to step down in front of the National Assembly in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Ahn Young-joon/AP) south-korea-martial-law-15 People gather in front of the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 4, 2024, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law. (AFP) south-korea-martial-law-16 Police attempt to prevent people from entering the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 4, 2024, after South Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law. (Anthony Wallace/AFP) south-korea-martial-law-17 Police attempt to hold back people trying to enter the National Assembly in front of the main gate of the National Assembly in Seoul, on Dec. 3, 2024. (Jung Yeon-Li/AFP) south-korea-martial-law-18 Furniture and boxes are piled up to barricade the entrance doors of the National Assembly, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-19 Lawmakers sit inside the hall at the National Assembly, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-20 Police officers keep watch outside the National Assembly, after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Kim Hong-Ji/Reuters) south-korea-martial-law-21 South Korea's National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik passes a resolution demanding the immediate lifting of martial law at the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 4, 2024. (Yonhap via AFP) south-korea-martial-law-22 South Korean lawmakers watch screens showing a news broadcast of President Yoon Suk Yeol's speech on lifting martial law, at the main conference hall of the National Assembly in Seoul on Dec. 4, 2024. (Yonhap via AFP) south-korea-martial-law-23 South Korea's National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik delivers his speech in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (South Korea National Assembly Speaker's Office via AP) south-korea-martial-law-24 A helicopter flies over the National Assembly in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Lee Jin-man/AP) south-korea-martial-law-25 A helicopter flies over the National Assembly in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Lee Jin-man/AP) south-korea-martial-law-26 A man wearing a national flag stands on the wall of the National Assembly in Seoul, Dec. 4, 2024. (Lee Jin-man/AP)
