A history of martial law in South Korea in Associated Press photographs

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — When South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law this week it was the first time a South Korean government took such a drastic measure since it became a fully functioning democracy more than 35 years ago.

But in the decades of largely autocratic governments and military rule from the end of World War II until the establishment of the Sixth Republic in 1988, martial law was not uncommon as the country faced political turmoil, uprisings, frequent protests and all-out war with North Korea.

It was last imposed in 1979 by Prime Minister Choi Kyu-hah after the assassination of President Park Chung-hee, a military dictator who had seized power in a 1961 coup. It was then extended in 1980 by Gen. Chun Doo-hwan, who also took the presidency in a military coup.

He used military force to put down student-led demonstrations in Gwangju, some 250 kilometers (150 miles) south of Seoul, killing hundreds of protesters.

In Seoul, thousands of university students took to the streets to demand an end to martial law, and were confronted by riot police using tear gas. Martial law was eventually lifted in 1981.

Martial law was first used in 1948 by South Korea's first president Syngman Rhee as he cracked down on communist uprisings, killing thousands.

It was also invoked during the 1950-53 Korean War to allow South Korea to use its military to stifle anti-government protests.

As Rhee struggled to hold onto power in the face of growing opposition, he imposed martial law again in 1960. Hundreds were killed in clashes between protesters and police. After Rhee was forced to resign in the face of nationwide demonstrations, jubilant South Koreans climbed aboard a tank outside Seoul's City Hall to celebrate.

While still president in 1972, Park Chung-hee initiated another coup to give himself dictatorial powers and declared martial law, again sending tanks into the streets of Seoul. It was lifted later the same year.

Through the years until his assassination in 1979, protests against Park's rule grew, and he used emergency measures to justify the jailing of hundreds of dissidents.

FILE- Scores of captured rebels with hands up are being led away Tuesday May 27, 1980, by armed soldiers from the provincial government HQ., in this city of Gwangju (Kwangju) which South Korean troops recaptured in a firefight earlier in the day. (AP Photo)

FILE- Commandeered city buses are used to block a main downtown street of Gwangju (Kwangju), May 23, 1980 by demonstrators against riot police and paratroopers during riotous anti-government protests this week. (AP Photo/File)

FILE- Soldiers carry away the body of a rebel killed in a firefight Tuesday May 27, 1980, when South Korean troops recaptured this riot-battered city of Gwangju (Kwangju). (AP Photo/File)

FILE- Korean student demonstrators gather with their collection of weapons, stolen from police and military, at a government building, in Gwangju (Kwangju), South Korea, May 24, 1980, during anti-government demonstrations. (AP Photo/File)

FILE- Government soldiers are erecting a roadblock on a street leading to downtown Gwangju (Kwangju), with citizens looking on, May 26, 1980. Rebels are holding the provincial capital in south western Korea days now. (AP Photo/ File)

FILE- Families and relatives gather around the coffins of dead protesters at provincial headquarters in Gwangju (Kwangju), South Korea, May 23, 1980, some 250 kilometers south of Seoul, South Korea. (AP Photo/Kin Chon Kil, File)

FILE- A helmeted army paratroops beats a man arrested during violent anti-government demonstrations in Gwangju (Kwangju), May 20, 1980. (AP Photo/File)

FILE- Police vehicle sprays tear gas at tens of thousands of student demonstrators in downtown Seoul, South Korea on Thursday, May 15, 1980. (AP Photo/Kim Chon-Kil, File)

FILE- Some 10,000 students of Seoul National University hold a campus rally on Friday, May 2, 1980 to demand the lifting of martial law and the resignation of Premier Shin Hyon-Hwack and Korean Central Intelligence Chief Lt. Gen. Chin Doc-Hwan. (AP Photo/Kim Chon Kil, File)

FILE- Seoul citizens walk beside an army tank on Saturday, Oct. 27, 1979, after martial law was declared following the death of President Park Chung-Hee. (AP Photo/Kim Chon-Kil, File)

FILE- Truckloads of South Korean paratroopers move in downtown Masan on Oct. 20, 1979 as a "garrison decree" was proclaimed following two days of rioting against the government in this south coast city, 300 km south of Seoul, South Korea. (AP Photo/Kim Chon-Kil, File)

FILE- An army tank stands guard in front of the National Assembly building in the heart of this South Korean capital of Seoul on Oct. 18, 1972. The single-house parliament was closed by Martial Law proclaimed. (AP Photo/File)

FILE- Jubilant South Koreans surmounted an army tank in Seoul's City Hall Plaza on April 27, 1960 as they celebrated apparent victory over President Syngman Rhee's government. Rhee resigned on April 27 in the face of nationwide demonstrations for democratic reforms and new elections. (AP Photo/File)

FILE- Some 200 college professors representing 27 colleges, march along a Seoul street, in South Korea, on April 25, 1960, after a meeting at the Seoul University. The professors expressed embarrassment that they had left it to their students to lead the movement against what they considered misrule by President Sungman Rhee. (AP Photo/File)

FILE- These are three South Korean newspapers for Wednesday, April 20, which show crude censoring by officials shown April 19, 1960. (AP Photo/File)

FILE- Students in South Korea capital of Seoul use shield to defy attempts to disperse them with fire hoses on April 19, 1960. Students were protesting manner in which recent election was managed. (AP Photo/Kim Chon Kil, File)

FILE- Two policemen flank demonstrators in Seoul, South Korea on April 18, 1960 using clubs to break up a riot protesting the March 15 presidential election. Demonstrations continued and on April 19 in the South Korean capital martial law was declared. (AP Photo, File)

FILE- Students hurl rocks and shout slogans at the police in defiance of a government ban on demonstrations in South Korea, on Monday, April 18, 1960. (AP Photo/File)

CAIRO (AP) — Palestinian officials say Fatah and Hamas are closing in on an agreement to appoint a committee of politically independent technocrats to administer the Gaza Strip after the war. It would effectively end Hamas' rule and could help advance ceasefire talks with Israel.

The rival factions have made several failed attempts to reconcile since Hamas seized power in Gaza in 2007. Israel has meanwhile ruled out any postwar role in Gaza for either Hamas or Fatah, which dominates the Western-backed Palestinian Authority.

A Palestinian Authority official on Tuesday confirmed that a preliminary agreement had been reached following weeks of negotiations in Cairo. The official said the committee would have 12-15 members, most of them from Gaza.

It would report to the Palestinian Authority, which is headquartered in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and work with local and international parties to facilitate humanitarian assistance and reconstruction.

A Hamas official said that Hamas and Fatah had agreed on the general terms but were still negotiating over some details and the individuals who would serve on the committee. The official said an agreement would be announced after a meeting of all Palestinian factions in Cairo, without providing a timeline.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media on the talks. There was no immediate comment from Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue the war until Hamas is dismantled and scores of hostages are returned. He says Israel will maintain open-ended security control over Gaza and continue to hold corridors within the territory, with civilian affairs in the rest administered by local Palestinians unaffiliated with the Palestinian Authority or Hamas.

No Palestinians have publicly volunteered for such a role, and Hamas has threatened anyone who cooperates with the Israeli military.

The United States has called for a revitalized Palestinian Authority to govern both the West Bank and Gaza ahead of eventual statehood. The Israeli government, which is opposed to Palestinian statehood, is reportedly discussing a postwar plan with the United Arab Emirates, which normalized relations with Israel in 2020 and backs a rival Fatah faction.

The Hamas official said the emerging Palestinian agreement would fulfill one of Israel’s war goals by ending Hamas’ rule in Gaza. It’s unclear if Israeli officials would see it that way.

Previous attempts at unity between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas have fallen apart, often because of competition for power between the two rivals — and there are opponents to the current talks within Fatah.

Jibril Rajoub, secretary-general of Fatah’s central committee, denounced the agreement, saying it was “a mistake that we even accepted the principle of discussing this matter.” He said the arrangement would entrench the division between the West Bank and Gaza by accepting two administrations. He said Hamas should instead let the Palestinian Authority retake administration of the territory. ”We represent the unity of the land and the government," he told journalists in the West Bank town of al-Bira.

The Palestinian Authority, which administers parts of the occupied West Bank, recognizes Israel and cooperates with it on security matters, a policy that is deeply unpopular among Palestinians, many of whom view it as a subcontractor of the occupation. Israel says the authority has not done enough to combat militancy or curb incitement.

The committee would assume its responsibilities after a ceasefire agreement with Israel, the Hamas official said. American and Arab mediators have spent nearly a year trying to broker such an agreement, but the negotiations have repeatedly stalled.

Hamas ignited the war with its Oct. 7, 2023, attack into Israel, in which Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted around 250. Some 100 hostages remain inside Gaza, at least a third of whom are dead.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed over 44,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to local health authorities, who do not say how many of the dead were combatants. The offensive has leveled much of the coastal territory and displaced the vast majority of its 2.3 million residents.

Federman reported from Jerusalem.

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Israeli armoured vehicles move on in an area at the Israeli-Gaza border, seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov)

A Palestinian inspects the car that was targeted in an Israeli airstrike that the military said was targeting a militant cell near the West Bank village of Al-Aqaba, Tuesday Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Majdi Muhammad)

Mourners carry the bodies of two Palestinians Akram Abu Arrah, seen, and Mohammad Ghannam, both killed in an airstrike Israel said targeted a militant cell, during their funeral in the West Bank village of Al-Aqaba, Tuesday Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Majdi Muhammad)

Mourners carry the body of Akram Abu Arrah, wrapped with a Hamas flag, out of the family house during his funeral with Mohammad Ghannam, both killed in an airstrike Israel said targeted a militant cell, in the West Bank village of Al-Aqaba, Tuesday Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Majdi Muhammad)

Mourners carry the bodies wrapped with the Palestinian flag, of Akram Abu Arrah and Mohammad Ghannam, both killed in an airstrike Israel said targeted a militant cell, during their funeral in the West Bank village of Al-Aqaba, Tuesday Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Majdi Muhammad)

Israeli troops enter the complex of the Turkish hospital, where they searched for the bodies of those killed in an airstrike, in the West Bank city of Tubas, Tuesday Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Majdi Muhammad)

Young Palestinians walk amongst rubble of destroyed buildings at a neighbourhood in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)