People Power Party lawmaker Rep. Bae Hyun-jin sustained a head injury after being attacked by an unidentified assailant Thursday, her office said. The incident happened around 5 p.m. in the southern Seoul district of Gangnam. According to Bae's aide, a male pedestrian walked up to Bae and asked, "Are you the lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin?" and struck her in the back of the head with a rock the size of an adult man's fist. Bae was transported to Soonchunhyang University Hospital with her head bleeding. Bae remained conscious and her injury is not believed to be life threatening. The suspect was momentarily arrested by police in Gangnam, and claimed to officers that he is 15 years old. Bae, 40, is a former television news anchor who was elected to her first term in the National Assembly in 2020. She briefly served as a spokesperson for then President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol in 2022. The attack on Bae comes some three weeks after Lee Jae-myung, leader of the opposition Democratic Party (DP), was stabbed in the neck du ring a visit to the southeastern city of Busan. In the aftermath of the incident, political opponents were united in calling for a thorough investigation into the attack. Lee posted on Facebook that Bae's incident hit too close to home for him. "No act of political terrorism should be tolerated. We must respond to these cases thoroughly and firmly," Lee wrote, while also wishing Bae a speedy recovery. PPP chief Han Dong-hoon visited Bae at the hospital and told reporters there that an incident such as this "should never happen." "We must get to the bottom of this case and hand down severe punishment on the assailant," Han said. "We at the PPP will do our best to uncover the truth of this incident quickly and clearly. We will also make sure the people won't feel worried over speculation." The PPP's spokesperson Jung Hee-yong also called for a thorough investigation and a stern response to the incident. "Violent crimes must be eradicated from our society," Jung said in a statement. DP spokesperson Han M in-soo condemned the attack on Bae as "a clear act of political terrorism that threatens democracy." "It's regrettable that our society is being polluted with hatred," Han said in a media briefing. "The DP will strive to prevent the spread of political terrorism and put an end to the politics of hatred." Source: Yonhap News Agency