Former South Korean President Sentenced to 30 Years for Drone Operation Over North Korea

A three-judge panel of the Seoul Central District Court sentenced former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to 30 years in prison for directing military drones to cross the heavily fortified inter-Korean border in late 2024. The court found that Yoon and his associates dispatched the drones to heighten tensions with North Korea, intending to create a pretext for declaring martial law. The conviction falls under the charge of "undermining South Korea’s military interests or providing military benefit to an enemy state," which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Yoon, 65, has faced multiple criminal cases since his impeachment and removal from office last year, and this marks the first time a former South Korean president has been convicted of this offense. He was previously sentenced to life imprisonment in February for masterminding an insurrection related to the same alleged plan.