South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing impeachment over his short-lived attempt to impose martial law that caused chaos in Seoul – and was condemned by opposition parties as “seditious behavior.”

Mr Yoon rescinded the statement shortly after MPs gained access to the country’s parliament in the early hours of Wednesday morning to vote against the authoritarian measures despite a standoff with the military. Armed troops entered the National Assembly building in Seoul but held off as parliamentary staff fired fire extinguishers at them. Lawmakers rejected the martial law decision while protesters scuffled with police outside.

“We can no longer allow democracy to collapse. “People’s lives and safety must be protected,” said Kim Yong Jin, a central committee member of the main opposition Democratic Party.

The Democratic Party also said it wanted to charge Mr. Yoon with “crimes of rebellion.” She named Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun and Interior Minister Lee Sang Min as “key participants” in the declaration of martial law and said she wanted to indict them alongside Mr. Yoon.

On Wednesday, Mr. Kim tendered his resignation and said he would accept full responsibility for martial law. He apologized to the public for causing confusion and unrest, the Defense Ministry said in a statement.

However, on Wednesday evening, crowds again took to the streets in a candlelit vigil to demand Mr Yoon’s resignation – a reminder of the massive protests that led to the impeachment of former President Park Geun Hye in 2017.

When Mr. Yoon declared martial law in a shocking late-night televised address on Tuesday, he vowed to eliminate “subversive” actors who he accused of sympathizing with North Korea.

Within hours, South Korea’s parliament unanimously passed a motion to lift martial law with 190 of its 300 members present, with 18 members of Yoon’s party present. The president then revoked the declaration of martial law about six hours after it was announced.

“We have submitted an urgently prepared motion for impeachment,” representatives of the six opposition parties said on Wednesday, suggesting that the vote could take place as early as Friday.

To be successful, it requires a two-thirds majority in parliament and the approval of at least six judges of the Constitutional Court. If the impeachment process is successful, Mr. Yoon would be suspended from office while the Constitutional Court reviews and ratifies the motion, a process that could take up to six months.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Han Duck Soo would assume presidential duties.

Upon his election in 2022, Mr. Yoon was welcomed by Western leaders as a partner in the U.S.-led effort to unite democracies against growing authoritarianism in China, Russia and elsewhere. But he caused unrest among South Koreans by branding his critics “communist, totalitarian and subversive forces” as his approval ratings plummeted. In November, he denied wrongdoing by him and his wife, first lady Kim Keon Hee, in response to influence-peddling allegations against the couple.

In declaring martial law, Mr. Yoon referred to a Democratic Party move earlier this week to indict some of the country’s top prosecutors for failing to investigate the first lady and for rejecting a government budget proposal.

South Korean ministers protested on Monday against the Democratic Party’s move to cut the government’s budget proposal by more than 4 trillion won (£2.3 billion). Mr Yoon said the measures would undermine the government’s essential functioning.

The political chaos has caused deep divisions in the president’s ruling People Power Party, whose leader has called for the entire Cabinet to resign.

Mr. Yoon’s senior aides, including chief of staff Chung Jin Suk and national security adviser Shin Won Sik, have also tendered their resignations. It is unclear whether these will be accepted by the president.

The presidential office defended the initial decision to declare martial law as “strictly within (the country’s) constitutional framework.” On Wednesday it said the announcement was timed to “minimize the damage to the economy and people’s lives.”

On Wednesday, protesters gathered in Gwanghwamun Square and in front of the National Assembly, holding placards with messages such as “Restore democracy” and “Immediately investigate his act of rebellion.” The march turned into a candlelight vigil that night.

Dramatic early morning scenes followed, with CCTV footage showing chaotic scenes of staff using sofas and fire extinguishers inside Parliament House to prevent soldiers armed with assault rifles and night vision goggles from entering the National Assembly.

Helicopters sent armed troops to parliament while others scaled fences and smashed windows after midnight, said assembly secretary-general Kim Min Ki.

Footage was also captured outside of a journalist-turned-lawmaker, Ahn Gwi Ryeong, grabbing a soldier’s gun. “I didn’t think… I just knew we had to stop this,” she told the BBC Korean Service.

Mr. Yoon’s actions have drawn comparisons to South Korea’s authoritarian era before the 1980s. The sight of military helicopters and armed soldiers near Parliament brought back memories of the military regime. Analysts warn that such actions undermine the country’s hard-won democratic principles.

The events sparked widespread concern among world leaders: Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Japan’s Defense Minister General Nakatani postponed their visits, and the United States and United Kingdom issued security warnings to citizens visiting the country.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a news conference at a NATO meeting in Brussels on Wednesday that it was important for South Korea to quickly resolve its internal political unrest, but said the country was still a democratic success story.

“Korea is one of the world’s most powerful stories of the emergence of democracy and democratic resilience, and we will continue to ensure that Korea leads by example,” he said.

Washington did not communicate the decision in advance, Blinken told Reuters, adding that he expected to speak with his South Korean counterpart in the coming days.