text: South Korean prosecutors on Wednesday indicted a man who slashed the U.S. ambassador in Seoul last month on charges of attempted murder. Kim Ki-jong, 55, was also indicted Wednesday on charges of assaulting a foreign envoy and obstruction, according to an official at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office, who did not want to be named, citing department rules. On Monday, the recovering diplomat, Mark Lippert, was pictured out on the streets of Seoul flanked by five bodyguards. His left hand is still in a cast from the attack. South Korean law requires the trial to start within 14 days, and there is a possibility that it could start as early as next week, according to an official at the Seoul Central District Court, who didn't want to be named, citing office rules. He said it was too early to comment on the potential penalties Kim could face. US Ambassador Mark Lippert was pictured with five bodyguards on Wednesday, following the attack that left his arm in a cast . Lippert required 80 stitches to close up the wounds on his hand, arm and face that he sustained from the anti-US activist . Victim: U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert, pictured on March 10, was allegedly slashed by Kim KI-jong at a breakfast forum on March 5 . Charged: South Korean maverick political activist Kim Ki-Jong, who faces possible attempted murder charges after slashing US Ambassador Mark Lippert, as he leaves a police station for a court in Seoul on March 6 . Alleged attacker: Kim Ki-jong is pictured being arrested at the site where U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert was attacked on March 5, 2015 in Seoul, South Korea . Prosecutors have also been investigating whether Kim violated a controversial law that bans praise or assistance for North Korea. The court official said it was possible prosecutors may add such charges against Kim during the trial. Police say Kim attacked Ambassador Mark Lippert with a knife during a breakfast forum on March 5. He suffered deep gashes on his face and arm and was treated at a Seoul hospital for five days. Lippert, 42, was bleeding from deep wounds to his face and wrist but was able to walk after the attack. Doctors said later his condition was stable after 'very successful' surgery that required 80 stitches in his face as the White House expressed optimism for his quick return to his duties. Police say Kim chose Lippert as a target to highlight his opposition to ongoing U.S.-South Korean military drills. North Korea has angrily reacted to the drills, calling them an invasion rehearsal. Anti-U.S. activists such as Kim have long blamed the presence of 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in the South as a deterrent to the North for the continuing split of the Korean Peninsula. In 2010, Kim tried to attack the Japanese ambassador to South Korea by throwing a piece of concrete and was given a suspended jail term, according to police. After the attack: Kim Ki-jong during his arrest after he allegedly attacked Ambassador Lippert with a razor blade to protest the presence of 28,500 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea . Watchdog Organization: Kim ji-Jong reportedly identified himself as a representative for a watchdog organization of the disputed island Dokdo/Takeshima and was arrested immediately on site .
target: Kim Ki-jong, 55, was indicted on charges of attempted murder for allegedly slashing U.S. Ambassador Mark Lippert with a razor at a breakfast forum .
  Prosecutors have also been investigating whether Kim violated a controversial law that bans praise or assistance for North Korea .
  Activist Kim blames the presence of 28,500 U.S. troops  in the South as a deterrent to the North for the continuing split of the Korean Peninsula .