South Korea’s Constitutional Court on Friday upheld the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol, removing him from office four months after his short-lived imposition of martial law on Dec. 3.

       Protesters who have been demanding his ouster erupted in cheers at the ruling, waving flags and pumping their fists in the air. For weeks leading up to the ruling, hundreds of thousands of people protesting for and against Mr. Yoon have lined the streets of Seoul, often enduring freezing temperatures, rain and snow.

       At 11 a.m. local time, the court’s acting chief justice, Moon Hyungbae, began reading the ruling, which came after months of deliberation. Some 22 minutes later, he announced that all eight of the court’s justices had voted to remove Mr. Yoon from office. The now ex-president had “betrayed the trust of the people” and “severely violated the law,” Mr. Moon said.

       “It has been a great honor for me to work for the country,” Mr. Yoon said in a statement released through his lawyers. “I and regretful and sorry that I could not live up to your expectations.”

       Advertisement

       SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

       The court ruling is effective immediately and cannot be appealed.

       Why was Mr. Yoon impeached? Late on Dec. 3, Mr. Yoon stunned the country when he declared martial law, but it lasted only six hours because lawmakers quickly voted to overturn it.

       Shortly after he made the announcement on live television, troops stormed the National Assembly building under orders to “break down the door and drag out” lawmakers gathering inside to vote down the martial law decree and arrest key figures, including the speaker of the floor. Crowds of citizens confronted the troops, and some lawmakers scaled fences to get into the assembly and vote.

       Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like.