Seoul, Aug 8 (IANS): BTS heartthrob Suga had announced back on August 6 his military conscription in The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (ROKAF) or the South Korean military. Now the K-pop star has officially started his mandatory military duties.

The BTS singer had earlier given plans to postpone his military enrollment to a later date, though he later ended up cancelling the postponement.

For members of K-pop groups, the service is usually postponed until they hit 30.

BigHit label announced the K-Pop star’s beginning of his military duties on Monday in a statement on Weverse, with the label giving out an official statement saying, "We would like to inform our fans that SUGA has initiated the military enlistment process by applying for the termination of his enlistment postponement."

"We ask you for your continued love and support for SUGA until he completes his military service and safely returns. Our company will spare no effort in providing support for our artiste," the statement further read.

With this, Suga has become the third BTS member to enter conscription after Jin in December 2022 and J-Hope in April 2023, both of whom are currently serving as active duty soldiers, while Suga due to a shoulder injury is likely to work in another department, though his posting details are not available as of now. This news comes on the heels of Suga’s three-night concert in Seoul which was his final show before conscription.

As such, BTS announced it will be on hiatus until 2025, owing to the members’ military conscription and pursuit of individual careers, so fans should not expect any new releases for a while.

South Korea has mandatory military conscription where every able bodied male citizen must serve in the ROKAF for a bare minimum of 18 months for Army, Marines or Police, 20 months of Navy or firefighting, and 21 months for Air Force. Women don’t have conscription though they may voluntarily join.