In the ensuing pursuit, all but two commandos were killed; one was captured (Kim Shin-jo), and one (Pak Jae-gyong) fled back to North Korea.

Park Chung Hee seized power in a 1961 coup d'état and ruled as a military strongman until his election and inauguration as the President of South Korea in 1963.

In July 1967, a special squad of the recently established Unit 124 of the Korean People's Army (KPA) was entrusted with the task of assassinating Park.

This special operation commando unit trained for two years and spent their final 15 days rehearsing action on the objective in a full-scale mockup of the Blue House.

"[3] Their training was rigorous and often in adverse conditions, such as running at a speed of 13 km/h (8 mph) with 30 kg (66 pound) rucksacks over broken and unforgiving terrain, which sometimes resulted in injuries such as lost toes and feet from frostbite.

The unit entered Seoul in two- and three-man cells on the night of January 20 and regrouped at the Seungga-sa Temple, where they made their final preparations for the attack.

When he grew suspicious of their answers, he drew his pistol and was shot by members of the unit who started firing and throwing grenades at the checkpoint.

[6] Of the 31 members of Unit 124, 29 were killed or committed suicide; one, Kim Shin-jo, was captured,[7] and the other one, Pak Jae-gyong managed to escape back to North Korea.

[9] On January 22, the United Nations Command (UNC) requested that a Military Armistice Commission (MAC) meeting be held to discuss the raid.

In Saigon, Viet Cong guerrillas attempted to assassinate President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu at the Independence Palace but were quickly beaten back.

He regarded the Blue House Raid as having been planned at the highest levels in North Korea, while the seizure of the Pueblo seemed merely opportunistic and the timing of the Tet Offensive as helpful but coincidental.

In May 1972, Kim Il Sung expressed regret and claimed that the Blue House raid "was entirely plotted by extreme leftists and did not reflect my intent or that of the Party" to the head of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) Lee Hu-rak during their meeting in Pyongyang.