▲ This file photo taken Jan. 10, 2024, shows the knife-wielding assailant of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung being referred to the prosecution. (Yonhap)

opposition leader-assailant

20-yr prison term sought for knife-wielding assailant of opposition leader Lee

SEOUL, May 21 (Yonhap) -- Prosecutors sought a 20-year prison sentence Tuesday for the man who stabbed opposition leader Lee Jae-myung during his political appearance in the southeastern port city of Busan in January.

Posing as a supporter, the 67-year-old man, surnamed Kim, approached Lee, chairman of the main opposition Democratic Party, and stabbed him in the neck with a knife during Lee's trip to inspect a new airport site in the city in early January.

The attack left Lee hospitalized for eight days for surgery to repair a major vein in his neck and for his subsequent recovery.

During the final court hearing before the verdict, prosecutors requested the Busan District Court sentence Kim to 20 years in prison.

(END)

[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]