South Korea's Supreme Court has ruled that religious or conscientious objection can be used as valid reason to refuse mandatory military service.
The court's ruling on Thursday overturns a lower court's previous decision that upheld a conviction of man who refused induction because he is a Jehovah's Witness.
The Supreme Court has previously upheld the law that mandates all South Korean men between the ages of 18 and 35 complete at least two years of military service. Thursday's landmark ruling could affect the cases of more than 900 men facing similar punishment.
The high court's ruling comes months after South Korea's Constitutional Court ruled that authorities had to provide an alternative form of service for conscientious objectors.
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