No Sang-won, former intelligence commander. /Courtesy of Yonhap News

On the 23rd, it was reported that the notebook of No Sang-won, the former head of the military intelligence command, who is accused of pre-planning the 'Dec. 3 Martial Law' situation, contained expressions suggesting an inducement of North Korean attacks. It is also known that the notebook included the expression 'national assembly blockade,' with journalists, unions, judges, and public officials listed as 'targets for collection.'

A representative of the special investigation team at the National Police Agency held a press briefing this morning and noted that the notebook was secured during the emergency arrest of the former commander No at the residence on the 15th. According to the police, No's notebook is about 60 to 70 pages, hand-sized, with many notes related to martial law. However, it was noted that no content related to the 'proclamation' was found in the notebook.

The police said the notebook contained the expression ‘inducement of the North at the NLL (Northern Limit Line).’ They further clarified that along with the filing of charges against President Yoon Suk-yeol for foreign exchange offenses by the Democratic Party and broader opposition parties on the 9th, “since the charges have been filed, we are jointly investigating,” indicating the investigation of President Yoon is ongoing. However, it has not yet been confirmed whether there were actual actions taken to provoke North Korea as suggested by the notebook's expressions, and they noted “there is concern of misinterpretation of the overall context from fragmented words.”

The police also revealed that the expression 'national assembly blockade' was specified in the problematic notebook in relation to martial law. It was noted that politicians, journalists, religious figures, union members, judges, and public officials were described as 'targets for collection.' The police added that 'collection' is interpreted as meaning arrest. It is reported that some targets, including judges, were listed by name. They further stated that methods for the accommodation and handling of these individuals were also mentioned in the notebook.

Regarding the reason why former commander No became a central figure in the investigation, the police explained that No was identified because an analysis of former defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun's call records, obtained during a search and seizure, revealed multiple contacts with No before and after the declaration of martial law. Additionally, it was noted that No is currently showing a passive attitude in giving statements, and factual relationships are being clarified based on intelligence agency personnel who had 'hamburger meetings' with him before the declaration of martial law.