South Korea special forces officer: 'We were all victims' of martial law

Col. Kim Hyun-tae says his troops 'followed the orders of their commander'

20241209 Colonel Kim Hyun-tae South Korea.jpg

Col. Kim Hyun-tae, the commanding officer of the 707th Special Missions Group of South Korea, fought back tears while speaking to reporters outside the defense ministry in Seoul on Dec. 9. © Yonhap/Kyodo

SEOUL (Reuters) -- The commander of South Korea's special forces that stormed parliament last week after a martial law declaration said on Monday he was ordered to block lawmakers from entering the chamber to prevent a vote to lift the emergency measure.

Col. Kim Hyun-tae, the commanding officer of the 707th Special Missions Group, told reporters he took all responsibility for his troops' raid on parliament but said he was acting under orders from the defense minister.

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