The impeachment trial of South Korea's suspended President Yook Suk Yeol begins Tuesday, with the country's Constitutional Court set to weigh whether to strip him of his presidential duties over a failed martial law bid.

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.

President Yoon Suk Yeol will not attend the first official hearing in the impeachment case this week due to concerns about his security, reports Yonhap. Defense attorney Yun Gap-geun made this statement as the Constitutional Court is set to hold the first oral arguments in the impeachment case against President Yoon on Tuesday,