South Korean President Yoon Removed From Office

South Korea's Constitutional Court removed impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol from office on Friday, four months after he threw South Korean politics into turmoil by declaring martial law and sending troops to parliament in an ill-fated effort to break through legislative gridlock. The unanimous verdict comes more than three months after the opposition-controlled National Assembly voted to impeach Yoon, the AP reports. South Korea must now hold a national election within two months to find a new president. Surveys show Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main liberal opposition Democratic Party, is the early favorite to become the country's next president.

At an anti-Yoon rally near the old royal palace that dominates downtown Seoul, people erupted into jubilant tears and dancing when the verdict was announced. Two women wept as they hugged and an old man near them leapt to his feet and screamed with joy. Yoon's declaration of martial law and subsequent impeachment plunged the country into political turmoil, with millions taking to the streets to denounce or support him. Many experts say Yoon supporters will likely intensify their rallies in the wake of the court's decision, prolonging national division. (Thousands of police officers descended on Seoul in anticipation of Friday's ruling.)