South Korean police said Wednesday that a man who stabbed opposition leader Lee Jae Myung earlier this month has claimed he tried to kill Lee so that he could not become president of the country in the future.
According to the police in Busan, where the stabbing took place on Jan. 2, the 67-year-old man has said he also wanted to prevent Lee's main opposition Democratic Party from winning in the general election scheduled in April by killing him.
Lee was stabbed in the neck in the southern port city and was taken to a local hospital before being transferred by helicopter to another hospital in Seoul, while the assailant was caught at the scene.
The man, identified only by his family name of Kim by the police, approached Lee while pretending to be a fan and stabbed him with a knife, footage of the incident taken by witnesses shows.
According to local media reports, Kim wrote of his anger about the state of politics before committing the crime.
Lee left the hospital on Wednesday after recovering from surgery. He told reporters at the hospital that he is grateful to those who supported him through his recovery.
Lee said he hopes the incident "will be a milestone in ending the politics of hatred," in a remark suggesting that he believes the crime took place against the backdrop of fierce confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties.
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