A Ministry of Justice minivan, presumed to be carrying impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, arrives at the Seoul Western District Court on Jan. 18, 2025, for a hearing on his formal arrest over a botched attempt to impose martial law.

A convoy vehicle, likely carrying impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol, arrives at the Seoul Western District Court in Seoul on Jan. 18, 2025, for an arrest warrant hearing at 2 p.m. at the court over his short-lived martial law decree last month. (Yonhap)

South Korea's impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol will not attend the first hearing of the trial to determine if he his removed from office or reinstated, Yonhap news agency quoted his lawyer as saying on Sunday.