SHINee's Onew to be discharged from military to follow COVID-19 protocols
After nearly a year and a half of service, SHINee member Onew is being discharged early from the military to follow COVID-19 protocols.
The news was confirmed by SHINee's agency, SM Entertainment, who said, “Onew went on his final leave today and will be discharged without returning to the military base.”
The move is said to be in accordance with the military protocol that soldiers need not return to the base after their final vacation due to COVID-19 precautions.
The agency further explained, “He will be discharged on July 20 without returning to the base and there will be no separate discharge event.”
Following the news of his discharge, Shawols couldn't help but rejoice over Onew's return with the hashtags “Jinki” and “Onew” taking a spot in the top trending topics on Twitter.
Onew (real name Lee Jin-ki) was the first member of SHINee to enlist back on December 10, 2018.
Following him are members Key and Minho who are expected to be discharged on October 7 and November 15, respectively. Youngest member Taemin has yet to enlist for his service.
Onew made his debut in 2008 as one of the lead vocalists and leader of SHINee. Aside from group activities, he has participated in various television dramas such as The Descendants of the Sun in 2016 where he played the cardiothoracic resident Lee Chi-hoon.
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