Yoon has started his first speech since he declared martial law late on Tuesday night local time.

Stay with us as we will bring you the latest from his speech.

As we've been reporting, President Yoon is expected to address the nation for the first time since he declared martial law late on Tuesday night local time. Here is a quick summary of what has been happening since.

• Hours after declaring martial law, the National Assembly voted to overturn the order - something President Yoon later accepted
• His actions led to calls for his resignation and his own party discussing whether to expel him
• Opposition lawmakers on Wednesday tabled a motion to impeach the president and have been pushing for a vote on this, which is due to go ahead later on Saturday

We're unpausing our live coverage because President Yoon is due to speak shortly.

We haven't heard from the president since all the drama of Tuesday night.

It did look like he would visit the parliament yesterday - but he backed out after lawmakers formed a human wall and said they would refuse to let him into the National Assembly.

Local media have quoted his office as saying that Yoon is expected to explain his stance related to his martial law declaration.

The speech comes hours before lawmakers are due to vote on a motion to impeach him.

Thank you for joining us as we followed fast-moving developments in South Korea three days after President Yoon Suk Yeol's short lived martial law. Here's what happened today:

• The leader of Yoon's party, Han Dong-hoon, said Yoon must be suspended from office, walking back an earlier statement that his party would not support an impeachment motion
• Han's U-turn was the clearest signal yet that the People Power Party might vote with the opposition to impeach Yoon. That vote is due to happen tomorrow

• Earlier today, Yoon had reportedly planned to visit parliament - where opposition lawmakers joined arms to block him upon hearing the news
• The Presidential Office later clarified that he would not be visiting

• Meanwhile, Seoul police are bracing for massive protests tomorrow, when parliament is due to vote on the motion to impeach Yoon
• The opposition coalition needs just eight members of Yoon party to pass the motion through a two-thirds majority of the 300-seat National Assembly

Read more about what happened today here.

On Tuesday night, President Yoon declared martial law in a surprise TV address.

What followed was a sleepless night for Seoul, sparking protests, fear and uncertainty in the country that had elected him.

Thousands gathered in front of the National Assembly building in Seoul, facing off against police and soldiers who had lined its gates, chanting "no to martial law".

Lawmakers, heeding the call of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, dashed to parliament to vote down Yoon's order. They had to scale fences and walls to get inside - and 190 of them made it, voting unanimously to block the martial law order.

Less than six hours since Yoon first dropped his shock announcement, he was back on TV taking back his words. But the political fallout was just beginning.

Read more about what went down that night in Seoul.

Nick Marsh
Reporting from Seoul

Earlier today, we spoke to an almost 70-year-old protester who was one of dozens who had set up camp near the National Assembly.

Jung-sook says she had rushed down to parliament upon hearing news of the martial law decree on Tuesday.

"I ran here to protect our democracy", she told us. "If the army started shooting, then I wanted us to be the first ones to be killed".

She was a university student during the time of Chun Doo-hwan, the military dictator who ruled South Korea during the 1980s.

"I'm nearly 70... I remember those times. People would protest and get carried away by the police. Some would get shot... but I want to be bulletproof".

"I'm not a patriot or anything but I can't stand this. I thought, I can't let this happen again: not to me or to my kids. Our president is crazy... but if he wants to arrest me, that's fine. I'll go to jail."

As she said goodbye, she told us to make sure to wrap up warm.

As a vote on President Yoon's impeachment looms large, today once again saw big anti-Yoon protests in Seoul, staged by civil society activists, lawmakers, and labour union workers.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

Earlier, we mentioned that the head of President Yoon Suk Yeol's party had accused the president of calling on his military commanders to arrest key political figures on the grounds of them being "anti-state" forces.

Watch the moment it happened.

We reported earlier that three military commanders who were involved in executing martial law on Tuesday have been suspended.

Now, we have just learned that prosecutors have filed a request to ban Special Forces commander Kwak Jong-keun, Capital Defence commander Lee Jin-woo and counterintelligence command chief Yeo In-hyeong from leaving the country, along with seven other senior military officers.

The seven include an army special warfare commander, three paratrooper brigade commanders and three colonels who moved troops that night.

As we reported just now, Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the ruling People Power Party, met President Yoon earlier today.

According to media reports, Han said he had urged Yoon to personally address the public - the President has not made a public appearance since he withdrew his martial law order on Wednesday.

But Yoon reportedly declined, saying it was not yet time.

Tens of thousands of people in Seoul are expected to gather for a mass rally at around 13:00 local time tomorrow, ahead of the vote by lawmakers on whether to impeach President Yoon, police have said.

The vote is scheduled to take place in the evening.

The gathering and march will be held in the city centre and the Yeouido area where the National Assembly building is located.

In a statement, Seoul police said traffic congestion is expected and officers will be deployed.

The BBC was earlier outside the National Assembly building, where opposition lawmakers have formed a human wall to block President Yoon, who had initially been expected to show up before he apparently changed his plans.

As we mentioned just now - it would have been his first public appearance since his botched attempt to impose martial law.

South Korea's defence ministry has suspended Special Forces commander Kwak Jong-keun, Capital Defence commander Lee Jin-woo and counterintelligence command chief Yeo In-hyeong - all three were involved in executing the martial law order on Tuesday night.

Earlier today, Kwak claimed he had only learnt about the order through the news and that he had rejected the instruction to remove MPs from the assembly floor on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo has cancelled his plans for this afternoon, say media reports.

He was planned to show up at a signing ceremony this afternoon at 14:30 (5:30 GMT), but it was first posponed to 17:00 and later cancelled.

"The event was cancelled because we didn't know what would happen as the political situation became more urgent," a senior official from his office told Yonhap news agency.

If Yoon gets impeached, he will be suspended pending a verdict by the Constitutional Court which has to rule within 180 days. In the meantime, Han would be the acting president.

Image source, Getty Images

Tom Bateman
in Washington D.C.

Earlier on Friday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to his South Korean counterpart for the first time since the beginning of the crisis,

Blinken expressed deep concerns to Cho Tae-yul about the declaration of martial law, and welcomed its lifting after it was blocked by the National Assembly.

He also conveyed his confidence in the democratic resilience of Korea and said he expected the country’s democratic process to prevail, according to State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.

"The American people stand shoulder to shoulder with the people of the ROK and will continue to do so in the face of any provocations or threats to the Alliance," he said, reaffirming that the US’s commitment to the alliance is "ironclad".

Image source, Reuters

Jake Kwon
Reporting from Seoul

Democratic Party member Jeong Jun-ho tells me opposition MPs formed a human chain to block Yoon from entering the National Assembly.

"He suddenly wants to pop in here? No way," Jeong said. "He didn't consult or notify us."

When asked about the possibility of Yoon having come to tender his resignation in parliament, Jeong said: “The Assembly’s duty is to follow the steps. Impeachment procedure had begun and we will follow it.”

Image source, Jake Kwon

Laura Bicker
Reporting from Seoul

As we mentioned earlier, MPs formed a human chain at the entrance of South Korea's National Assembly and chanted for Yoon to be impeached while reporters got their cameras ready.

But the wait was in vain. The Presidential Office confirmed he had no plans to visit the National Assembly.

There were unconfirmed reports that Mr Yoon was coming to apologise and resign.

For now, MPs remain inside the building and the country waits once more to hear about the fate of their president.

A vote to impeach him is due to be held tomorrow.

Tessa Wong
Reporting from Seoul

Earlier, we reported that Yoon was heading to the National Assembly.

A parliamentary official we spoke to said he was not sure why Yoon might have done this, and was only told Yoon was arriving - which the Presidential Office has now said is not happening.

It would have been his first public appearance since his botched attempt to impose martial law.

The Presidential Office has just denied reports that Yoon would visit the National Assembly this afternoon.

A senior source told reporters "there is no schedule for the president to visit the National Assembly today".

Tessa Wong
Reporting from Seoul

Image source, BBC/Jake Kwon

We have now been told by a parliament official that Yoon is not coming. It is unclear what made him change plans, but one clue could lie in the large group of angry opposition lawmakers standing in the foyer of the national assembly.

In the last 15 minutes, the quiet steps of the National Assembly quickly filled up as journalists hurried to get into position upon hearing Yoon was arriving imminently. There was a flurry of activity as security tried to push back the crowd.

But now there seems to be confusion. Many are still waiting to see what will happen. Inside, the lawmakers that were chanting loudly have gone silent.