South Korea Suspends Navy Chief Amid Martial Law Investigation

South Korea's defense ministry has excluded Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Kang Dong-gil from duty amid an investigation into his alleged involvement in a failed martial law attempt during the tenure of former President Yoon Suk Yeol in late 2024. This move marks the second suspension of a high-ranking military official appointed under President Lee Jae Myung's administration, following the suspension of Ground Operations Commander General Joo Sung-un. The investigation has identified a significant number of military personnel potentially implicated in the martial law imposition. ## Timeline * **February 12, 2026:** The defense ministry took action against Ground Operations Commander Gen. Joo Sung-un over suspicions of martial law involvement (koreajoongangdaily.joins.com). * **February 13, 2026:** The defense ministry announced the exclusion of Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Kang Dong-gil from duty due to alleged involvement in the 2024 martial law bid (koreajoongangdaily.joins.com, prokerala.com). * The ministry identified around 180 personnel as having been involved in the martial law imposition following a monthslong probe into about 860 general-level and field-grade officers (koreajoongangdaily.joins.com, prokerala.com). * Approximately 1,600 personnel across the military, affiliated with various commands including the Army, counterintelligence, special operations, and Defense Intelligence Command, were found to have been mobilized on the night of the martial law imposition (koreajoongangdaily.joins.com, prokerala.com). * Kang served as chief of the directorate of military support at the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the time of the martial law imposition and was among the seven top-brass officers appointed as four-star generals in September last year (koreajoongangdaily.joins.com, prokerala.com). * The deputy chief of the Navy will serve as acting Navy chief following Friday's decision, the ministry said, adding disciplinary action will be considered for Kang (koreajoongangdaily.joins.com, prokerala.com).