By Josh Smith and Joyce Lee

SEOUL (Reuters) – A South Korean court gave authorities permission on Tuesday to arrest President Yoon Suk Yeol after he was impeached and suspended from power for imposing martial law, marking the first time that a the sitting president of the country is facing arrest.

The Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) confirmed that the Seoul Western District Court approved the arrest warrant requested by investigators looking into Yoon’s brief imposition of martial law.

Yoon is facing an investigation into allegations that he was the leader of an insurrection, one of the few criminal cases in which a South Korean president does not have immunity. Separately, his impeachment trial is being heard by the Constitutional Court.

The arrest warrant for an incumbent president is unprecedented, and deepens the political crisis engulfing South Korea, Asia’s fourth-largest economy and a key US ally.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, who succeeded Yoon as acting president, was also impeached by the parliament, which is dominated by the opposition.

Finance Minister Choi Sang-mok, who took over as acting president after Han’s impeachment, is dealing with the crash of Jeju Air flight 7C2216 on Sunday, which killed 179 people in the deadliest air disaster on earth. in South Korea.

The current arrest warrant may remain in effect until January 6, and once it becomes available, Yoon is expected to be held at the Seoul Detention Center, Yonhap news agency said, citing the CIO.

Yoon Kab-keun, a lawyer for the impeached president, said the arrest warrant was illegal and invalid because the CIO did not have the authority under South Korean law to request a warrant.

He said the president’s legal team will file an injunction in the Constitutional Court to stop the warrant.

The district court issued the warrant because of the possibility that Yoon would not answer the calls without a reasonable reason, and there is a sufficient reason to suspect Yoon of a crime, Yonhap said. The court declined to comment.

It is unclear when or how the arrest warrant for Yoon will be executed. South Korea’s presidential security service said in a statement on Tuesday that they would handle the arrest warrant according to due process.

The court also approved a search warrant for Yoon’s residence, the CIO said.

Previously, the police tried but failed to successfully raid the president’s office as part of the investigation, due to the presidential security service blocking access.

SHORT MARTIAL LAW

Yoon has failed to respond to investigators’ calls for questioning several times since the declaration of martial law on Dec. 3. The announcement, an attempt to ban political activity and censor the media, is the first order in South Korea since the 1980s.

That night, troops forced their way into the National Assembly building in Seoul but retreated when parliamentary aides sprayed them with fire extinguishers. Lawmakers rejected the martial law decision as protesters clashed with police outside, and Yoon rescinded the order within hours.

The backlash was swift. While Yoon survived the first impeachment attempt, members of his party later joined opposition parties to impeach him on December 14.

Han took over as acting president, but he too was impeached on Friday after he refused to approve judges appointed by parliament to the Constitutional Court.

The next hearing in Yoon’s case at the Constitutional Court is scheduled for Friday.

Kim Yong-hyun, who resigned as Yoon’s defense minister after playing a major role in the martial law decree, was detained and indicted on Friday on charges of insurrection and abuse of power.

The acting leader of South Korea’s ruling People Power Party, Kweon Seong-dong, said Tuesday that trying to impeach a sitting president was inappropriate.

Kim Yong-min, a lawmaker from the opposition Democratic Party, which holds the majority in parliament and carried Yoon’s impeachment vote, said on Tuesday: “The process of executing the warrant and investigation will be very difficult”, calling on those investigator who will then execute the warrants.