In a dramatic and historic turn of events, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shocked his nation and the world late Tuesday by declaring martial law, citing a purposed threat to national security from the democratic party sympathizing and working to undermine their democracy. Under the mounting pressure of parliament and citizens, martial law was lifted within hours, making it the shortest period in South Korean history and a night of political defiance.

At 10:19 AM on Tuesday, December 2, 2024, President Yoon addressed the nation, accusing the opposition Democratic Party of ‘anti-state activities’ and claiming they were collaborating with North Korean forces to jeopardize the nation’s integrity.

Opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, who narrowly lost to Yoon in 2022, began live-streaming himself and his journey to parliament while urging others to do something similar. “There is a very high possibility that the military will be mobilized to arrest members of parliament,” Lee warned.

By midnight, over 190 lawmakers in parliament convened at the national assembly to vote on revoking martial law. However, soldiers and police began to block access and even attempted to breach the assembly building, but despite their best efforts, lawmakers managed to vote. At 12:35 a.m., they passed a motion to end martial law with a unanimous 190-0 vote, including 18 members of Yemen’s conservative People’s Power Party.

At 4:20, Yoon addressed the nation by announcing the withdrawal of military forces and the official end of martial law. Still, before the broadcast ended, he doubled down on his accusations against the opposition and blamed them for the country’s political gridlock.

As of now, Democratic Party lawmakers plan to hold an impeachment vote. A party spokesperson said, “The Yoon Suk Yeol regime’s declaration of emergency martial law caused great confusion and fear among our people,” Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Seung-won told the National Assembly earlier. Kim also ordered the deployment of troops to the parliament, Vice Defense Minister Kim Seon Ho said, adding that he was unaware of the order until Yoon declared it.

“I have fundamentally opposed the mobilization of military forces under martial law and have expressed negative opinions about it,” Kim Seon-ho told a parliament hearing on Thursday, apologizing and taking responsibility for failing to prevent it.

South Korea’s Army Chief offered to resign over the whole situation. Currently, the parliament is probing Yoon, his interior ministers, and his defense minister.