(RepublicanView.org) – A member of South Korea’s ruling People Power Party was rushed to hospital following an attack in the capital city, Seoul. Bae Hyun-jin, a former TV journalist, was attacked with a rock to the head by a man seen waiting outside her building. CCTV footage shows him speaking to the lawmaker and then hitting her on the head around a dozen times before bystanders intervened.
Police arrested the attacker at the scene. A spokesperson for Seoul police said the suspect was questioned in the presence of a guardian and promised to conduct a thorough investigation to determine the motive for the attack.
Bae Hyun-jin is the second South Korean politician to endure a physical attack this year. Democratic Party Leader and leader of the opposition, Lee Jae-myung, was stabbed in the neck during a press conference in Busan on January 2. Busan Metropolitan Police said the lawmaker was rushed to Seoul National University Hospital via helicopter after suffering damage to his jugular artery.
Democratic Party spokesperson Kwon Chil-seung described the assault on Mee Jae-myung as an “act of terror” and a “serious threat to democracy.” President Yoon Seok-yeol said, “Our society should not tolerate such acts of violence,” accordiing to ABC News.
The previous year, in 2022, Song Young-gil, Lee Jae-myung’s predecessor, was attacked in the street with a hammer while serving as campaign manager for Mr. Lee. Media reports said the attacker protested against South Korea’s alliances with the United States immediately before the assault.
In 2015, US Ambassador Mark Lippert needed 80 stitches to his face and spent five days in hospital following an assault in Seoul. A Korean nationalist, also objecting to US-South Korean relations, was arrested. Mr. Lippert suffered nerve damage to his left wrist when he tried to defend himself from the knife attack.
South Korea is one of America’s strongest allies in the region, and the country is home to almost 30,000 US troops.
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