{
  "id": 13907817,
  "title": "President spars with liberal allies over investigation body chief nomination",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/president-spars-with-liberal-allies-over-investigation-body-chief",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-12T08:22:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times-koreatimes",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/politics/20261012/president-spars-with-liberal-allies-over-investigation-body-chief-nomination"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "President Lee Jae Myung is embroiled in an unusual conflict with members of his own party and liberal figures over the nomination of Kim Ji-yong to serve as the first chief of the Serious Crimes Investigation Agency (SCIA). The SCIA was created as part of recent prosecutorial reforms, dividing the prosecutors' office into SCIA, which handles serious crimes, and the Public Prosecution Service (PPS), responsible for indicting suspects and prosecuting cases. The nomination, made on September 8, has turned the much-anticipated prosecution reform into a highly contentious internal dispute. Critics from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), the smaller liberal Rebuilding Korea Party (RKP), and other liberal groups argue that Kim's record of defending prosecutorial powers makes him unsuitable to lead the new agency. They also label him as a loyalist.",
  "summary": "It is normal for a president to clash with members of opposition parties, especially those with different political inclinations, over reform measures. President Lee Jae Myung, however, is having an unusual conflict — one against members of his own party and other liberal figures. The conflict is over the nomination of Kim Ji-yong, a former prosecutor, to be the inaugural chief of the Serious…",
  "key_points": [
    "President Lee Jae Myung in conflict with party allies over SCIA chief nomination",
    "Kim Ji-yong nominated as SCIA chief on September 8",
    "Critics argue Kim unsuitable due to defending prosecutorial powers record"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "[COVER STORY] President spars with liberal allies over investigation body chief nomination",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/12/cover-story-president-spars-with-liberal-allies-over-investigation",
        "published": "2026-10-12T08:42:03.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}