Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was released from detention on Saturday following a court order, nearly two months after his arrest on insurrection charges.
Television footage captured Yoon bowing and waving to supporters outside the Seoul detention center, where he had been held since January 15. In a statement through his lawyers, he expressed gratitude to the nation and thanked the court for its “courage and determination in correcting the illegality.”
His release followed a Seoul Central District Court ruling on Friday granting his request for freedom.
Yoon was arrested in January over his December 3 decision to declare martial law, which triggered a political crisis. South Korea’s opposition-led parliament impeached him in mid-December, suspending him from office.
The 64-year-old resisted arrest for two weeks inside his presidential compound before being taken into custody. Yoon has since defended his actions, calling martial law a necessary step in an “existential crisis.”
Despite his release, Yoon remains suspended and still faces criminal insurrection charges. The Constitutional Court is currently deciding whether to permanently remove him from office or reinstate him.
Insurrection, one of the few charges that does not grant presidential immunity, carries a life sentence or the death penalty—though South Korea has not carried out an execution in decades.
