Thousands protested in South Korea when Yun resisted his second arrest attempt Political news

Thousands of South Koreans continued to gather for a rival protest in Seoul, which briefly declared martial law amid warnings of bloodshed as investigators prepared another attempt to arrest ousted President Yoon Suk-yeol.

Pro- and anti-Yun protesters gathered in sub-zero conditions on major streets in the center of the nation’s capital on Saturday to demand that he be arrested or have his charges dismissed.

Yun is resisting arrest following a standoff between his guards and investigators last week, after his failed Dec. 3 coup plunged South Korea into its worst political crisis in decades.

On Friday, Park Chong-joon, Yoon’s security chief, resigned after being investigated for preventing the embattled president’s arrest. Park warned that any efforts to arrest the former leader should be avoided by violence.

He told reporters that the current attempt to arrest Yun was wrong and “there should be no physical conflict or bloodshed under any circumstances.”

On Saturday, Park again came under fire for denying Yeon’s arrest.

The country has been under tension for weeks after Yun ordered troops into parliament in an attempt to prevent politicians from voting on martial law.

Since the failed martial law attempt, Yoon has been impeached by parliament and suspended pending the Constitutional Court’s final decision on his impeachment.

Meanwhile, prosecutors launched a separate investigation and obtained a court order for Yeon’s arrest, which the president’s security denied. The arrest warrant expired Monday.

Kim Seong-hoon took over as head of security from Park Yeon. He is expected to lead efforts to prevent the execution of a second warrant. According to news reports, Yeonu’s guards have fortified the Seoul campus with barbed wire and bus barricades.

The CIO said he would “prepare well” for a second attempt to arrest Yoon and warned that anyone who interfered could be arrested.

The National Bureau of Investigation, the police department, also sent a memo to top police officials in Seoul asking them to prepare to mobilize 1,000 investigators, Yonhap news agency reported.

If Yun is taken into custody, he will become the first sitting president of South Korea to be imprisoned.

Al Jazeera’s Patrick Falk reports from Seoul that there is no indication when a second arrest warrant will be issued for Yoon, but that next week could be crucial to the political crisis as Yoon’s first trial is set to take place. Tuesday.

“It is not clear whether they showed it before the Constitutional Court; Falk said it might not because of some legal issues. “And if it doesn’t go to court, that complicates the whole process.”

Falk said Saturday’s protest remained celebratory and peaceful.

“These could be some of the biggest protests we’ve seen since the political rumor broke out, with some reports suggesting there were as many as half a million people on the streets of Seoul,” he said.

“If you come down here, you’d be forgiven for mistaking this for some sort of K-pop concert. These ongoing demonstrations are loud and colorful and carefully organized. It’s easy to see why so many people want to get involved.

Kim Min-ji, a 25-year-old anti-Yon protester and student, told the AFP news agency that the police and the Corruption Investigation Bureau (CIO) failed to take decisive action.

“Despite our efforts, (Yon) continues to evade responsibility,” Kim said. It is vital for us to raise our voices until he is removed from power.

Su Yohan, a 71-year-old Yoon supporter, has “valid reasons” for suspecting the president’s declaration of martial law to root out anti-government forces.

“He is a person elected by the people to represent our country. “Saving Yun is the way to save our country,” Su said.

Brandon Kang, a 28-year-old Yoon supporter, told AFP he liked the president because “he is similar to the election of US President Donald Trump, who I really admire.”