South Korea’s special prosecutor has requested the death penalty for former President Yoon Suk Yeol over his brief martial law declaration in 2024, charging him with leading an insurrection.

Yoon claims the action was within his constitutional authority to protect freedom and sovereignty, while prosecutors allege it was a power grab targeting the judiciary and legislature.

The martial law order, issued on Dec. 3, 2024, was overturned within hours after lawmakers gathered to nullify it, though troops had already clashed with protesters and legislators.

If executed, it would be South Korea’s first death sentence carried out in nearly 30 years, as the country has not executed anyone since 1997, CNBC has reported.

The case echoes South Korea’s past, including General Chun Doo-hwan’s 1979 coup and subsequent martial law, for which he was sentenced to death in 1996 before the sentence was commuted.