{
  "id": 656970,
  "title": "Special counsel indicts ex-President Yoon over messages justifying martial law",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/12/special-counsel-indicts-ex-president-yoon-over-messages-justifying",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-12T11:27:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times-koreatimes",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/southkorea/politics/20260812/special-counsel-indicts-ex-president-yoon-over-messages-justifying-martial-law"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A special counsel team indicted former President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday, alleging he instructed officials to justify his failed attempt at martial law to the United States and other significant international partners. Special counsel Kwon Chang-young's team charged Yoon with abuse of power in their first indictment against the imprisoned ex-leader. With this new indictment, Yoon now faces a total of eight trials, related to his martial law imposition in December 2024, his wife's alleged corruption, and other alleged offenses. Prior to Wednesday's indictment, Yoon had been set to stand trial seven times; however, the Supreme Court recently concluded a seven-year prison sentence for his obstruction of investigators attempting to detain him after his martial law bid. The latest charges concern allegations that Yoon directed the presidential National Security Office and the foreign ministry to send justifications for the emergency order to key nations, including the U.S., Britain, Japan, and European Union members, immediately after declaring martial law. Shin Won-sik, the national security adviser at the time, is also implicated in the latest indictment.",
  "summary": "A special counsel team indicted former President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday on charges of instructing officials to justify his failed martial law bid to the United States and other major partner nations. Special counsel Kwon Chang-young's team said it charged Yoon with abuse of power in its first indictment against the jailed former president. With the new indictment, Yoon is standing a total of…",
  "key_points": [
    "Former President Yoon Suk Yeol indicted for abuse of power",
    "Charges include directing officials to justify martial law to international partners",
    "Yoon faces eight trials in total for various offenses"
  ],
  "editors_take": "This indictment marks an escalation of legal pressure on former President Yoon, expanding his trial schedule and further complicating his existing legal woes.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Yonhap News",
        "title": "Special counsel indicts ex-President Yoon over messages justifying martial law",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/12/special-counsel-indicts-ex-president-yoon-over-messages-justifying-657881",
        "published": "2026-08-12T10:39:25.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Korea Times",
        "title": "Special counsel indicts ex-President Yoon over messages justifying martial law",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/12/special-counsel-indicts-ex-president-yoon-over-messages-justifying-663421",
        "published": "2026-08-12T12:57:02.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "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."
}