South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol has declared emergency martial law, which he says is necessary to protect the country from North Korea's communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements
Lawmakers have since voted to block the president's move, after both the ruling party and opposition vowed to obstruct the declaration
Protests have been taking place outside parliament, with the BBC's Jake Kwon hearing chants of “no to martial law” as police sirens ring out
Yoon's People Power Party and the opposition Democratic Party have been locked in dispute over next year's budget bill
Martial law means rule by military authorities in a time of emergency, and can mean the suspension of normal civil rights
Analysis: Yoon is mired in controversy and has been a lame duck president since the last general election, writes Jake Kwon in Seoul
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BBC reporter on shock among protesters at the sudden martial law announcement
Edited by Jamie Whitehead and Nathan Williams, with Jake Kwon reporting from Seoul
Jake Kwon
Reporting from Seoul
As we've been reporting, South Korean lawmakers have overwhelmingly passed the motion to demand that President Yoon Suk Yeol lift the martial law imposed a few hours ago.
The speaker of the National Assembly, Woo Won-Shik, has officially notified the president’s office and the defence ministry.
Legally, the president must now lift martial law, but politically, we must wait and see. There's been no word from Yoon since he addressed the nation.
This was a high stakes gamble for Yoon and he cannot afford to lose.
The lawmakers are staying put in the Assembly Hall for now.
We can bring you some comments from the UK's prime minister now, who has described the situation in South Korea as "fast moving".
Keir Starmer's official spokesperson says the British government is monitoring the situation closely.
“We would advise all British nationals to monitor the UK's travel advice for updates and follow the advice of local authorities," he adds.
Extra advice on the Foreign Office's website, external also adds that British people should "avoid political demonstrations".
The South Korean military says it will maintain martial law until it is lifted by President Yoon Suk Yeol, despite the nation's parliament voting to block its enforcement, according to the country's national broadcaster.
It follows clashes between protesters and the security forces who tried to barricade the National Assembly.
It's almost 02:30 in South Korea. Around 190 lawmakers are still sitting in the National Assembly chamber, having blocked the president's move to declare martial law just over an hour ago.
The military personnel that had been in the building earlier have now departed – but the representatives say they will stay put in case of an attempt to disband the parliament.
Here's how we got here:
Stay with us as we continue to follow closely these extraordinary developments in Seoul.
The National Assembly speaker has just said that South Korean troops are leaving the parliament building, the Yonhap news agency reports.
Soldiers had entered the building shortly after the president's declaration of martial law.
Jake Kwon
Reporting from Seoul
Representative Lee Seong-yoon, of South Korea's main opposition party, spoke to the BBC a short while ago from the main Assembly Hall, as he was waiting for the vote to start.
He said he had to climb over a 1.5m (4.9ft) tall fence to get into the assembly because police blocked him, even with identification that he was a lawmaker.
In case you missed it: lawmakers have voted to block the president's move to declare martial law.
We're seeing images now capturing some of the chaotic scenes both inside and outside South Korea's parliament, after the president shocked the nation by declaring martial law.
There have been reports of clashes between police and protesters outside the main parliament, with military personnel seen advancing on the entrance.
David Oh
BBC Korean Service, reporting from Seoul
We can bring you more detail now on how South Korea's parliament voted.
National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik submitted a resolution requesting the lifting of martial law around 01:00 local time.
The resolution was passed with 190 of 300 members of the ruling and opposition parties in attendance, with all present in favour.
South Korea's parliament has voted to block the president's move to declare martial law, according to the Yonhap and Reuters news agencies.
We'll bring you more on this as we have it.
Jake Kwon
Reporting from Seoul
We are outside the National Assembly grounds now.
We hear can hear protesters chanting “no to martial law”, "strike down dictatorship" and "open the gate" as the sounds of sirens occasionally ring out.
Dozens of police patrol cars and riot police buses are assembled.
Rachel Lee
BBC World Service
Photos of tanks lining the streets are circulating online, sparking confusion and concern.
Ra Ji-soo, a Seoul resident, reports hearing helicopters near her home. She also shares that a friend in the police force has received an emergency mobilisation order and was on their way to the station.
Kim Mi-rim, another Seoul resident, has packed an emergency kit, fearing the situation might escalate. She recalls that previous instances of martial law involved arrests and imprisonment.
Meanwhile, journalists in Seoul are co-ordinating closely, sharing advice on how to stay cautious. With martial law in effect, all media and publishing activities will fall under strict government control.
In addition to the heavy police presence outside the South Korean parliament, we're seeing images now of helicopters circling the skies above it.
Some helicopters have landed on the parliament's roof, the AFP news agency reports.
As large crowds gather outside the National Assembly building in Seoul, a live feed from South Korea's Yonhap news agency inside the building also shows people gathering there.
In the last half an hour, the feed captured what appeared to be a crowd of people attempting to force their way through a set of doors, as a chorus of shouting broke out.
Yonhap reports that only members of the National Assembly and other staff, as well as reporters, are being let in.
There were reports earlier that parliament's speaker planned to open a session there.
Jake Kwon
Reporting from Seoul
As we reported earlier, the leader of South Korea's main opposition, the Democratic Party, has called on all its members to assemble at parliament – this has now been confirmed to the BBC by Representative Hong Kee-won.
Currently, around 70 members of the opposition are inside the assembly, while the rest are gathering outside, he says.
When Speaker Woo Won-shik arrives he will call for a vote to lift the martial law, Hong says.
Hong adds that he was told special forces soldiers are inside the assembly building. It is unclear what the soldiers are doing.
We're receiving the first images now of large crowds gathering outside the South Korean National Assembly, after the country's president declared martial law.
A line of police officers appears to be guarding the entrance gate to the building, which has been closed.
The Biden administration is in contact with the South Korean government and is "monitoring the situation closely", a US national security council spokesperson tells the BBC's US partner CBS.
The US president is yet to comment on the South Korean counterpart's declaration of martial law.
We can bring you more detail now on exactly what the enforcement of martial law will mean for South Korea.
According to the Yonhap news agency, those who violate martial law can be arrested without warrant.
In addition, all media and publishers will be under the martial law command and activities. And, as we reported earlier, parliamentary activity is banned.
Medical staff, including trainee doctors, have been ordered to return to work in 48 hours, it adds.
Rupert Wingfield-Hayes
Asia correspondent
In his late night TV broadcast, President Yoon Suk Yeol said he had no choice but to resort to martial law in order to safeguard free and constitutional order.
"I declare martial law to protect the free Republic of Korea from the threat of North Korean communist forces, to eradicate the despicable pro-North Korean anti-state forces," Yoon said.
South Korea’s main opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung has condemned the move, calling it unconstitutional.
He has called on all lawmakers from his Democratic Party to converge on parliament to vote down the declaration, but latest reports from Seoul say police buses have been moved in to block the entrance to the parliament building.
The last time martial law was declared in South Korea was in 1979 after the assassination of then dictator Park Chung Hee.
John Nilsson-Wright, an associate professor at the University of Cambridge, has just spoken to the BBC World Service from Seoul, giving us a glimpse at the current mood in the South Korean capital.
While martial law usually involves restrictions on what the public can do, he says he sees no signs of the military on the streets of Seoul, and has chatted to a policeman, who he says is “as mystified as I am”.
“The streets look normal, people here are certainly bewildered,” he says. “It looked like this was simply politics of a normal sort.”
Jake Kwon
Reporting from Seoul
South Korea's main opposition, the Democratic Party, has called on all its lawmakers to assemble at the National Assembly, the country's legislative body, South Korea's news agency Yonhap reports.
Its leader, Lee Jae-myung, has called on the public to gather at the assembly, it says.
The People's Power Party leader Han Dong-hoon has called the declaration of martial law a "wrong" move, and has vowed to block it.
(As a reminder, President Yoon – who declared martial law – is also a member of the PPP).
According to South Korean law, the government must lift martial law if the majority of National Assembly demands in a vote.
The same law also prohibits martial law command from arresting lawmakers.
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