The government has designated as an act of terrorism the 2024 knife attack on President Lee Jae Myung when he was visiting Gadeok Island in Busan as the Democratic Party leader. 

The prime minister’s office said Tuesday that a motion to designate the stabbing as terrorism was passed at a national counterterrorism committee meeting chaired by Prime Minister Kim Min-seok. 

This is the first time any incident has been designated as an act of terrorism at the government level since the enactment of the Act on Counter-Terrorism for the Protection of Citizens and Public Security in 2016. 

The prime minister’s office said that as a follow-up measure, the government will launch efforts to shed light on the incident and devise measures to prevent similar attacks. 

Lee was attacked on January 2, 2024, while speaking to reporters after checking the site of delayed construction for a new airport on Gadeok Island. 

A man in the crowd stabbed Lee on the left side of his neck, causing him to fall to the ground bleeding.

Lee was transported by helicopter to a hospital some 20 minutes after the attack, having received medical treatment on site for a wound around one centimeter long.