Thousands rally for alliance with U.S.

? Thousands of South Koreans, including former defense ministers wearing their old military uniforms, rallied Friday in Seoul demanding the president halt moves to retake wartime command of the country’s military from the United States.

“Stop the plot to destroy the Korea-U.S. alliance!” some of the protesters chanted during a rally in front of the city’s central train station.

Over their heads flew balloons strung with placards bearing the images of the South Korean and the U.S. national flags side-by-side.

Police said about 5,000 people, many of them elderly veterans, turned out for the demonstration that underlined the worsening divide in South Korean society over the government’s push for the return of wartime command.