South Korea opposition leader stabbed by ‘autograph hunter’
THE South Korean opposition leader is recovering in intensive care after being stabbed in the neck by a man who approached for his autograph.
Lee Jae-myung, of the Democratic Party, was attacked yesterday by an assailant who wore a paper hat inscribed with the politician’s surname and lurched at him with a seven-inch knife.
The incident occurred during a tour of a proposed site for a new airport in the southern city of Busan.
Footage shows Mr Lee with his eyes closed and bleeding heavily with aides pressing a handkerchief to his neck.
He was airlifted to the capital Seoul where he underwent two-hour surgery to repair a major blood vessel.
Busan police said the assailant was born in 1957 and used a knife that had been bought online. No further details about him have been released and police have launched an investigation.
Yoon Suk Yeol, the president, said: “This type of violence must never be tolerated under any circumstances.”
With South Korea’s election scheduled for April, Kwon Chil-seung, the Democratic Party spokesman, condemned the attack as “political terror”.
Mr Lee narrowly lost the presidential election in 2022 and has widely criticised the political atmosphere in the country, last year undertaking a hunger strike against what he described as the Yoon government’s “incompetent and violent” policies.
Mr Lee is facing trial for bribery charges, which he denies, in connection with a firm that is suspected of illicitly transferring $8 million (£6million) to North Korea.
He is also accused of breaching his duties, allegedly resulting in a loss of 20 billion won for a company owned by Seongnam city during his term as its mayor.
Lee has denied all allegations against him.
Political violence in the country is not uncommon, particularly as leaders are not heavily guarded. Lee’s predecessor, Song Young-gil, was hurt in 2022 by an assailant who swung a blunt object against his head.
Political analysts say that tensions could rise owing to uncertainties about the future of the region with a “ripple effect” across the Korean Peninsula as elections get under way in Taiwan, Japan and the US.
Kim Heung-kyu, a director of the Us-china Policy Institute at Ajou University, said: “There is a growing presence of uncertainties in both diplomatic and security aspects.
“This heightened uncertainty raises concerns about potential ripple effects on the Korean Peninsula, particularly if the Taiwan issue is mishandled amid the two ongoing wars.”
Park Geun-hye – the former president who was sentenced to 24 years in jail following a corruption scandal – was also slashed across the face with a utility knife in 2016.
Her father, Park Chung-hee, who was president for 16 years, was shot and killed by his spy chief in 1979.