UPDATE - South Korea’s President Yoon banned from overseas travel amid probe into martial law

UPDATES WITH STATEMENT FROM OPPOSITION; ADDS BACKGROUND; CHANGES HEADLINE

ISTANBUL (AA) - South Korea on Monday imposed an overseas travel ban on President Yoon Suk Yeol amid the ongoing political crisis triggered by his failed martial law attempt.

The country's Justice Ministry imposed the ban on Yoon.

This is the first ban imposed on a sitting president.

The travel ban request was filed by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials.

Yoon is being investigated over alleged treason, insurrection, mutiny, and abuse of power after the majority of lawmakers rejected his martial law declaration on the night of Dec. 3.

However, he survived an impeachment motion over the move, after 190 lawmakers voted to reject the imposition of martial law.

At least 280 soldiers were sent to the parliament to block lawmakers from holding session against martial law but they failed.

A police official told a news conference in Seoul that authorities are reviewing all options, including questioning the president and even the possibility of his arrest.

At least 11 people have been identified by the police for the probe and a travel ban has been imposed on former Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, former Interior Minister Lee Sang-min, former Counterintelligence Command Commander Lt. Gen. Yeo In-hyung, and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Park An-su, who was named martial law commander during the short-lived martial law.

Defense Chief Kim has since been arrested while at least five military commanders have been suspended, with the investigation going on into the botched up martial law.

South Korea's ruling People Power Party leader has vowed to minimize the fallout from Yoon's aborted martial law declaration as it said the embattled president would not be involved in the country's internal and foreign affairs before he steps down.

Meanwhile, the Defense Ministry stressed that the control of South Korean military forces “currently lies with President Yoon Suk Yeolas the commander in chief.”

Kim Hyun-tae, the commander of the 707th Special Missions Group of South Korean military, told lawmakers on Monday: “I was the one who ordered the soldiers to head to the National Assembly (parliament) and break the windows to enter.”

“I am an incompetent and irresponsible commander. I pushed the unit to the brink. ... I will take responsibility for all the wrongdoings of 707th soldiers as their commander.”

- More charges against Yoon, Kim over drone flight into North Korea

As the political crisis deepened in South Korea, a parliamentary committee attended by the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) lawmakers Monday passed a bill to appoint a permanent special counsel to investigate treason charges Yoon.

The bill will be put to vote on Tuesday in the parliament where DP holds majority.

The DP has also filed additional complaint against President Yoon, as well as for former Defense Minister Kim, on charges of "general treason" with the police.

The opposition has claimed that Kim had "discussed a plan to strike the origin" of North Korea's trash balloons which "clearly raises suspicions of general treason," the Seoul-based Yonhap News reported.

Pyongyang, which has maintained a deafening silence over the turn of events in Seoul, launched hundreds of trash balloons into South Korea which had launched propaganda loudspeakers along the border on the southern side of the Demilitarized Zone that divides the Korean Peninsula.​​​​​​​

"This is an act that has the potential to escalate into a ... war and armed conflict between the South and the North, and is an intentional attempt to provoke military conflict and create a martial law situation," said the opposition party.

North Korea in October also claimed to have downed an unmanned drone, which it blamed on the South Korean military.

The DP blamed Kim for such an alleged decision, and said: "This constitutes ordinary treason, an act that harms the military interests of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) or provides military benefits to the enemy."

Notably, the US-led UN Command in South Korea had found that Seoul's installation of speakers and broadcast of propaganda against North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “encouraged” Pyongyang to launch trash balloons.

The command also accused Seoul of violating the armistice on the Korean Peninsula by launching propaganda against Pyongyang from the Demilitarized Zone.