-
US suspends green card lottery after MIT professor, Brown University killings
-
Stocks mixed with focus on central banks, tech
-
Arsenal in the 'right place' as Arteta marks six years at club
-
Sudan's El-Fasher under the RSF, destroyed and 'full of bodies'
-
From farms to court, climate-hit communities take on big polluters
-
Liverpool have 'moved on' from Salah furore, says upbeat Slot
-
Norway crown princess likely to undergo lung transplant
-
Iraq negotiates new coalition under US pressure
-
France's budget hits snag in setback for embattled PM
-
Putin hails Ukraine gains, threatens more, in annual press conference
-
US suspends green card lottery after Brown, MIT professor shootings
-
Chelsea's Maresca says Man City link '100 percent' speculation
-
Dominant Head moves into Bradman territory with fourth Adelaide ton
-
Arsenal battle to stay top of Christmas charts
-
Mexican low-cost airlines Volaris and Viva agree to merger
-
Border casinos caught in Thailand-Cambodia crossfire
-
Australia's Head slams unbeaten 142 to crush England's Ashes hopes
-
Epstein files due as US confronts long-delayed reckoning
-
'Not our enemy': Rush to rearm sparks backlash in east Germany
-
West Indies 110-0, trail by 465, after Conway's epic 227 for New Zealand
-
Arsonists target Bangladesh newspapers after student leader's death
-
Volatile Oracle shares a proxy for Wall Street's AI jitters
-
Tears at tribute to firefighter killed in Hong Kong blaze
-
Seahawks edge Rams in overtime thriller to seize NFC lead
-
Teenager Flagg leads Mavericks to upset of Pistons
-
Australia's Head fires quickfire 68 as England's Ashes hopes fade
-
Conway falls for 227 as New Zealand declare at 575-8 in West Indies Test
-
Japan hikes interest rates to 30-year-high
-
Brazil's top court strikes down law blocking Indigenous land claims
-
Conway falls for 227 as New Zealand pass 500 in West Indies Test
-
'We are ghosts': Britain's migrant night workers
-
Asian markets rise as US inflation eases, Micron soothes tech fears
-
Giant lanterns light up Christmas in Catholic Philippines
-
TikTok: key things to know
-
Putin, emboldened by Ukraine gains, to hold annual presser
-
Deportation fears spur US migrants to entrust guardianship of their children
-
Upstart gangsters shake Japan's yakuza
-
Trump signs $900 bn defense policy bill into law
-
Stokes's 83 gives England hope as Australia lead by 102 in 3rd Test
-
Go long: the rise and rise of the NFL field goal
-
Australia announces gun buyback, day of 'reflection' after Bondi shooting
-
New Zealand Cricket chief quits after split over new T20 league
-
England all out for 286, trail Australia by 85 in 3rd Test
-
Australian announces gun buyback, day of 'reflection' after Bondi shooting
-
Joshua takes huge weight advantage into Paul fight
-
TikTok signs joint venture deal to end US ban threat
-
Conway's glorious 200 powers New Zealand to 424-3 against West Indies
-
WNBA lockout looms closer after player vote authorizes strike
-
Honduras begins partial vote recount in Trump-dominated election
-
Nike shares slump as China struggles continue
South Korea opposition urges swift ruling on president's fate
South Korea's opposition party Monday urged the country's Constitutional Court to rule swiftly on suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment, saying delays were "irresponsible" and causing social unrest.
Yoon was impeached by lawmakers over his disastrous December 3 declaration of martial law, and the court last month held weeks of tense impeachment hearings to decide whether to formally strip him of office.
Despite experts predicting a verdict by mid-March, the Constitutional Court has yet to rule -- making Yoon's case the longest deliberation in its history.
Some 100,000 people took to Seoul's streets over the weekend, police said Monday, with protests demanding Yoon's immediate removal from office, alongside large gatherings in support of him.
"The nation and its people have reached their limits. Tension and patience have already been pushed beyond their bounds," opposition MP Kim Min-seok told a party meeting Monday.
"We await a responsible decision from the Constitutional Court. Any further delay would be abnormal and irresponsible."
Police have said they were prepared to mobilise "all available equipment" to prevent unrest when the court announces the impeachment verdict.
Yoon's supporters have already stormed a Seoul court once, smashing the doors and windows of a district court in Seoul after a judge there extended Yoon's detention, and authorities have warned of violence around the impending verdict.
"We are discussing the temporary closure of nearby shops and gas stations on the day of the verdict," a police official told AFP Monday.
Park Hyun-soo, acting chief of Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, told reporters last week that the police would "designate the area within 100 metres of the Constitutional Court as a protest-free zone, effectively creating a 'vacuum' in that space."
Park said police were undergoing additional training involving the use of pepper spray and batons, adding that the agency was also considering deploying police special forces to "respond to bomb threats".
In addition to the impeachment verdict, Yoon also faces a criminal trial on charges of insurrection for declaring martial law in December, making him the first sitting South Korean president to stand trial in a criminal case.
He was detained in a dawn raid in January on insurrection grounds, but was released in early March on procedural grounds.
M.Furrer--BTB