26-1-2024 (SEOUL) South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has denounced an attack carried out by a minor against a ruling party lawmaker earlier this week, branding it as an act of “terrorism,” according to statements released by his office on Friday.
The targeted lawmaker, Bae Hyun-jin, aged 40, was assaulted on Thursday in Seoul’s affluent Gangnam district, where she was repeatedly struck on the back of her head with a rock.
Following the assault, Bae was promptly admitted to the hospital for medical attention. Doctors attending to her disclosed that she sustained a non-life-threatening scalp injury, measuring 1cm, for which they performed two sutures using a stapler.
The perpetrator, identified by police as a 15-year-old minor, was subsequently ordered to undergo observation at a hospital, as reported by South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
Bae Hyun-jin, a member of South Korea’s opposition party, was violently attacked by an assailant who repeatedly hit him on the head with a hammer-like object. Surveillance footage from Bae’s office captured the assailant engaging in conversation with Bae before launching the… pic.twitter.com/G3VwuYKPF6
— Mr NQV (@KidNqv) January 25, 2024
This incident comes in the wake of a recent attack on opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung, who was stabbed in the neck while engaging with reporters in the port city of Busan.
Describing the assault on Bae as an affront to democracy, President Yoon asserted, “The terrorism targeting politicians, who represent the people, is tantamount to terrorism against the populace,” as conveyed by Han O-sub, senior presidential secretary for political affairs.
Yoon’s condemnation of the attack echoes sentiments expressed by both the ruling People Power Party and the opposition Democratic Party, which have categorised the incident as a form of “political terrorism.”
As South Korea braces for a pivotal election scheduled for April 10, President Yoon’s conservative party is vying to secure a parliamentary majority, a feat not achieved since 2016.
In light of recent events, authorities have underscored the importance of vigilance, particularly in the wake of the meticulously planned stabbing of opposition leader Lee, orchestrated by a well-prepared assailant seeking to thwart his political ambitions.
Following the attack on January 2, Lee underwent surgery and resumed his duties approximately two weeks later.
