The trial of impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol was set to start on Tuesday with oral arguments over his short-lived bid to impose martial law which threw the country into the worst political chaos in decades.

South Korea looks set for a dramatic political showdown this week as impeachment proceedings kick off against suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol, who remains holed up in his fortified residence evading arrest for a separate criminal investigation.

Yoon Suk Yeol is facing a criminal investigation for alleged insurrection, the first case of its kind against a sitting South Korean president.