South Korea: Interior Minister Lee Sang-min Resigns Amid Martial Law Crisis

Seoul, Dec 8 (NationPress) Interior Minister Lee Sang-min resigned from his position on Sunday amid political unrest triggered by President Yoon Suk Yeol's failed martial law declaration the previous week.

The ministry confirmed that Yoon accepted Lee's resignation shortly after it was tendered.

Lee, a close aide to Yoon, made his resignation public in a statement, just a day after the major opposition party put forward an impeachment motion against him, with the vote set to take place on Tuesday, as reported by Yonhap news agency.

During a session of a parliamentary committee that followed the lifting of martial law, Lee defended Yoon, asserting that the President enacted martial law while following constitutional processes and laws.

However, Yoon's acceptance of the resignation could incite additional criticism, as it appears to be an exercise of presidential authority, contradicting earlier statements from ruling party leader Han Dong-hoon that Yoon would refrain from engaging in state affairs until his 'early and orderly' departure.

In February of last year, Lee had been suspended from his duties after the opposition-controlled National Assembly passed an impeachment motion against him due to the crowd crush incident during the 2022 Halloween celebrations in Seoul's Itaewon district, which resulted in the deaths of 159 people.

In July of last year, the Constitutional Court unanimously dismissed the motion, reinstating him as minister immediately.