Anti-corruption officials say they were blocked by 200 presidential personnel. Plus, FBI says New Orleans terror suspect acted alone

Good morning.

South Korea’s political crisis took a dramatic turn on Friday when investigators were forced to abandon an attempt to arrest the impeached president, Yoon Suk Yeol, after a tense standoff with his security forces.

What are the details of Friday’s standoff? Local media reports said anti-corruption officials – who are leading a joint team of police and prosecutors – entered the compound to find themselves blocked by troops under the control of the presidential security service.

What happened on 3 December? Yoon declared martial law in an attempt to root out what he described as “anti-state, pro-North Korean” forces – a reference to opposition MPs in the national assembly. He did not provide any evidence for those claims, however. He was forced to lift the order six hours later after lawmakers forced their way past troops into the parliament building to vote it down.

What do we know about the New Orleans attack suspect? It’s understood Jabbar was born and raised in Texas, served in the US army from 2007-15, and in 2022 was $27,000 behind on house payments, he said in court documents. Jabbar’s brother told AP that in recent months he’d isolated himself.

Why didn’t steel bollards stop the attack? Seven years ago, officials began installing barriers at intersections in the French Quarter of the city. But the steel bollards were in the process of being replaced over New Year’s Eve.