(MENAFN) South Korea has formally charged ousted President Yoon Suk Yeol with providing assistance to adversaries following accusations he authorized drone missions into North Korea during 2024.

Prosecutors from the special investigation unit have additionally accused Yoon of power abuse, alleging he greenlit the October drone operations to provoke a Pyongyang response that would later justify his December martial law declaration, South Korean media reported Monday.

The investigative team, headed by special counsel Cho Eun-suk, has been examining Yoon's controversial attempt to implement emergency military rule. Previously, they filed charges against him for hindering their January detention efforts and violating Cabinet officials' civil liberties during the martial law period.

Prosecutors initially explored charging him with inciting foreign hostilities, though such allegations would have demanded evidence of direct coordination with an adversarial nation.

Authorities ultimately filed charges of "benefiting the enemy in general" following their determination that the October 2024 unmanned aerial operations resulted in classified defense information being compromised when the aircraft went down near Pyongyang.

Former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and ex-Defense Counterintelligence Command chief Yeo In-hyung received indictments for enemy assistance and authority misuse.

Kim Yong-dae, commander of the Drone Operations Command, was charged without incarceration for interfering with government functions and directing subordinates to fabricate documentation.

In a parallel case, Yoon faces separate insurrection charges from prosecutors related to the martial law order. He has remained incarcerated since July.

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