US Officials Meet South Korean Pastor Who Led Anti-Impeachment Rallies For Yoon

(MENAFN- IANS) Seoul, June 8 (IANS) Senior US State Department officials recently met with a South Korean pastor who had led rallies opposing the impeachment of now-jailed former President Yoon Suk Yeol over his failed marital law bid, according to a church on Monday.

According to Segero Church, Riley Barnes, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labour (DRL), and Julie Turner, acting deputy assistant secretary of state for DRL, along with White House faith liaison Belsis Romero, visited the church in Busan, some 330 kilometres southeast of Seoul, on Sunday for a meeting with Senior Pastor Son Hyun-bo.

The church said the visit was arranged after the US side reached out about a month ago, and added that the two sides discussed a broad range of issues in South Korea, reports Yonhap news agency.

According to the church, discussions covered a wide range of issues, including a proposed law on dissolving religious corporations and discussions on a comprehensive anti-discrimination law, among others.

Son also leads Save Korea, a conservative Christian civic group that spearheaded rallies opposing Yoon's impeachment following his failed martial law bid in December of 2024.

The pastor was indicted on charges of conducting illegal election campaigning during last year's presidential election and was sentenced earlier this year to six months in prison, suspended for one year.

Meanwhile, a court is set to deliver its verdict this week on former President Yoon Suk Yeol's charges of ordering drone incursions into Pyongyang during his tenure as a pretext to declare martial law, officials said on Sunday.

The Seoul Central District Court will hold the hearing for Yoon on Friday on charges that include benefiting the enemy and abuse of authority, according to judicial officials.

Yoon is accused of ordering the South Korean military to fly drones over Pyongyang in October 2024 as a pretext to declare martial law on December 3, the same year.

A special counsel team led by Cho Eun-suk earlier demanded a 30-year prison term for Yoon, reports Yonhap news agency.

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