By Lee Tae-hoon
A two-day appeal hearing will take place from Monday over responsibility for the sinking of the frigate Cheonan off the west coast last March, a senior defense official said Thursday.
Gen. Han Min-koo, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff will chair the hearing with the participation of four other top military officials, including Army chief Kim Sang-ki.
In late November, a military disciplinary board suspended from duty or cut the pay of nine senior military officials, including five generals, for allegedly fabricating reports and neglecting their duties.
All of them appealed against the rulings, denying responsibility for the failure to prevent the sinking of the Cheonan, which was torpedoed by a North Korean submarine on March 23, 2010.
The Cheonan tragedy killed 46 of the sailors onboard the 1,200-ton ship
A total of 11 military officials were brought in front of the disciplinary board last year, but it decided not to take action against Choi Won-il, the surviving former captain of the warship, unless any new charges are brought against him in the next six months.
It also cleared Yang Cheol-ho, who was in charge of operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the time of the incident.
It found the remaining officers accountable for creating security loopholes.
A military source says if the appeal board upholds the ruling the disgraced officers plan to appeal to a civil court.