South Korea to Repatriate Over 300 Workers Detained in Hyundai Georgia Raid.
More than 300 South Korean workers detained during a massive U.S. immigration raid at a Hyundai factory in Georgia will be released and returned home, the South Korean government announced Sunday.
Kang Hun-sik, head of President Yoon Jae-myung’s administration, said Seoul and Washington had concluded negotiations on the workers’ release. He added that South Korea plans to charter a plane for their repatriation once remaining administrative procedures are completed.
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun is scheduled to travel to the U.S. on Monday to discuss the matter further, according to South Korean media.
U.S. immigration authorities reported on Friday that 475 people were detained during the raid, most of them South Korean nationals, at Hyundai’s sprawling Georgia facility where electric vehicles and EV batteries are produced in partnership with LG Energy Solution. Of those detained, more than 300 were confirmed to be South Korean citizens.
The raid, one of the largest of its kind under the Trump administration’s mass deportation program, sparked outrage in South Korea, a key U.S. ally. Seoul has voiced concern that the legal rights of its citizens and the business operations of South Korean companies should not be unfairly affected. Diplomats were dispatched to the site to assist the detained workers.
Videos released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement showed federal agents ordering workers to line up outside, conducting searches, and securing some individuals with handcuffs. Most detainees were taken to an immigration detention center in Folkston, Georgia, near the Florida border. No charges have been filed yet, and investigations are ongoing.
Kang stated that South Korea will seek revisions to the visa system to better protect business travelers participating in investment projects in the United States.
