A South Korean court has sentenced former president Yoon Suk Yeol to an additional 30 years in prison after finding him guilty of orchestrating a covert drone operation into North Korea that prosecutors said was intended to provoke a military response and justify his later declaration of martial law.
The ruling marks the latest chapter in the dramatic downfall of the former leader, who is already serving a life sentence for insurrection following his failed attempt to impose martial law in December 2024.
The Seoul District Court found that Yoon ordered drones to fly into North Korean territory in October 2024, allegedly hoping the operation would trigger retaliation from Pyongyang and create conditions for a national emergency.
In its judgment, the court concluded that the operation was designed to induce a confrontation with North Korea under the guise of a military mission.
“The defendants used the guise of a military operation to induce provocations from North Korea with the aim of creating a state of emergency,” the court said, according to local reports.
Earlier Conviction
The court convicted Yoon of treason and abuse of power alongside former Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun, former Defence Counterintelligence Command chief Yeo In-hyung, and former Drone Operations Command head Kim Yong-dae.
Kim Yong-hyun was also sentenced to 30 years in prison, while Yeo received a 15-year sentence. Kim Yong-dae was handed a three-year prison term suspended for five years.
According to the court, the operation increased the risk of military conflict on the Korean Peninsula, with judges determining that Yoon bore the greatest responsibility for the actions.
Yoon’s legal team argued that the drone flights were a legitimate response to North Korea’s repeated provocations, including the launch of rubbish-filled balloons across the border into South Korea during 2024.
Relations between the two Koreas deteriorated sharply that year after North Korea accused Seoul of sending drones carrying anti-regime propaganda leaflets into Pyongyang. The North described the alleged incursions as a dangerous provocation that could have sparked war.
The court, however, ruled that Yoon had deliberately authorised the drone mission expecting North Korea to retaliate.
In addition to the new sentence, Yoon had previously been convicted of insurrection, abuse of power and obstructing his own arrest following his controversial declaration of martial law on December 3, 2024.
At the time, he claimed the measure was necessary to protect South Korea from “anti-state” forces sympathetic to North Korea. The move triggered widespread protests and political turmoil before it was reversed within hours amid public and parliamentary opposition.
The crisis eventually led to Yoon’s impeachment and removal from office, paving the way for a presidential election won by Lee Jae-myung of the opposition Democratic Party.
