Opposition leader recovering after Tuesday’s knife attack: surgeon

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, lies on the ground after being stabbed in the left side of his neck during a visit to the construction site of an airport on Gadeok Island off Busan on Tuesday. (Yonhap)

Main opposition party leader Lee Jae-myung was on the mend after being stabbed in the neck during his visit to Busan on Tuesday morning, a surgeon who operated on him at Seoul National University Hospital said Thursday.

Lee sustained a knife wound on the left side of his neck that was about 1.4 centimeters wide and had surgery to close the wound, according to vascular surgeon Min Seung-kee, who performed the surgery.

“About 60 percent of the anterior part of the internal jugular vein was cut, and there were blood clots,” the surgeon said as he briefed the press on Lee’s course of treatment at the hospital’s Suh Sung-hwan Research Hall in central Seoul.

The surgeon explained that he had applied nine millimeters of stitches, removed blood clots, glued the wound with a clip and inserted a drainage tube to suture the cut during the one-hour and 40-minute surgery.

“Fortunately though, no damage to arteries, as well as injuries in the surrounding cranial nerves, esophagus or airway were observed. ... Also, to prevent secondary infection after surgery, the medical team cleaned the wound,” he added.

The surgeon, however, noted that Lee’s progress should be closely monitored as surgical problems such as post-operative bleeding could occur.

The opposition leader was stabbed after touring the construction site of a new airport on Busan’s Gadeok Island. He was rushed to Pusan National University Hospital by helicopter. After receiving emergency treatment there, he was airlifted to SNUH for surgery.

By Park Jun-hee(junheee@heraldcorp.com)