Lee, who suffered a wound to his jugular vein, was first taken to hospital in Busan (File)

Seoul, South Korea:

South Korean opposition chief Lee Jae-myung narrowly escaped dying when he was stabbed within the neck, a celebration lawmaker mentioned Wednesday, as police had been granted a warrant to look his assailant’s property.

Lee was surrounded by journalists in southern Busan metropolis Tuesday when a person pretending to be a supporter pushed by a crowd after which lunged at him, stabbing him on the left facet of his neck with a knife.

Lee, who suffered a wound to his jugular vein, was first taken to hospital in Busan, then flown to the capital Seoul the place he underwent a two-hour surgical procedure. He’s at the moment recovering within the intensive care unit.

“Busan medical employees said that if the attacker’s knife had struck Lee’s carotid artery he might have been killed immediately on the scene,” Democratic Get together lawmaker Jung Chung-rae mentioned throughout a celebration assembly Wednesday.

“Lee is at the moment recovering in intensive care however the state of affairs is so critical that visiting is troublesome,” he added.

Kang Cheong-hee, a medical physician and a member of the Democratic Get together, later mentioned Lee suffered “a extreme damage”.

In line with the Yonhap information company, police mentioned Wednesday that they deliberate to hunt an arrest warrant for the 66-year-old suspect, recognized solely by his surname Kim, who was detained on the scene. 

The warrant would permit police to proceed to carry the suspect.

A district court docket issued a warrant to look the suspect’s home and workplace as a part of the investigation, Yonhap mentioned, including that police will give attention to discovering the precise motive behind the assault.

South Korean authorities plan to carry tried homicide prices in opposition to the assailant, and the attacker instructed the police, in accordance with Yonhap, that his intention was to kill Lee.

“The assailant’s confession that he had meant to kill is totally stunning,” lawmaker Jung mentioned.

In footage aired on South Korean tv stations, police had been seen wrestling the suspect, who displayed a pro-Lee slogan, to the bottom.

The 59-year-old politician was “strolling to his automobile whereas speaking to reporters when the attacker requested for his autograph”, a witness instructed native broadcaster YTN.

In line with Yonhap, suspect Kim had been working as an actual property agent in South Chungcheong Province, round 115 kilometres south of Seoul.

Citing supply messages for registered mail from banks at his workplace, amongst different supplies, Yonhap reported Kim had been dealing with monetary difficulties and was unable to pay the month-to-month lease for the workplace for seven months.

Misinformation

South Korea is gearing up for a vital election on April 10, by which Yoon’s conservative celebration goals to regain a parliamentary majority for the primary time since 2016.

For the opposition democratic celebration, a victory within the basic election is seen as a crucial prerequisite for getting ready for the following presidential election in 2027.

Lee has confronted some calls from inside his personal celebration to step down as its chief forward of the April basic election. 

Misinformation concerning the assault on Lee was circulating on-line, with some claiming the whole incident was staged — claims that lawmaker Jung mentioned had been “merciless and corrupt”. 

“Headlines similar to ‘Faux blood with a faux knife’ and ‘YouTubers carry up conspiracy theories’ make me query how way more merciless and corrupt folks could be,” he added.

A number of high-profile South Korean politicians have been attacked in public in previous years.

An aged man hit Track Younger-gil, who led the Democratic Get together earlier than Lee, within the head with a blunt object in 2022.

In 2006, Park Geun-hye, then the chief of the conservative celebration and who later turned president, was assaulted with a knife at a rally. The assault left a scar on her face.

Lee misplaced in 2022 to conservative Yoon Suk Yeol within the tightest presidential race in South Korea’s historical past.

A former youngster manufacturing facility employee who suffered an industrial accident as a teenage college drop-out, Lee rose to political stardom partly by enjoying up his rags-to-riches story.

He’s broadly anticipated to run for president once more in 2027, and up to date polls have indicated that he stays a robust contender.

However his bid for the highest workplace has been overshadowed by a string of scandals, and he nonetheless faces trial on prices of bribery in reference to a agency that’s suspected of illicitly transferring $8 million to North Korea.

5 people linked to Lee’s numerous scandals up to now have been discovered lifeless, many in what gave the impression to be suicides.

(Apart from the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV employees and is revealed from a syndicated feed.)