More than 300 South Korean workers detained in a massive immigration raid at a Hyundai plant in Georgia will be released and returned home, the South Korean government announced Sunday. Kang Hoon-sik, chief of staff for President Lee Jae Myung, said negotiations with the United States had finalized the workers' release. He added that Seoul will dispatch a charter plane to bring them home once remaining administrative steps are completed. U.S. immigration authorities said Friday they detained 475 people, most of them South Korean nationals, after hundreds of federal agents raided Hyundai's electric vehicle manufacturing site in Georgia. The raid targeted a plant still under construction, where Hyundai has partnered with LG Energy Solution to build EV batteries. South Korea's Foreign Minister Cho Hyun confirmed that more than 300 South Koreans were among those detained. The operation, part of President Donald Trump's mass deportation agenda, was notable both for its scale and because the Hyundai site is Georgia's largest economic development project. The raid shocked many in South Korea, a key U.S. ally, particularly after Seoul agreed in July to purchase $100 billion in U.S. energy and invest $350 billion in the American economy in exchange for lower tariffs. President Lee and Trump held their first summit in Washington two weeks ago. Lee called for "an all-out response" to the raid, stressing that the rights of South Korean nationals and the economic activities of Korean companies "must not be unfairly infringed upon." The Foreign Ministry expressed "concern and regret" and sent diplomats to the site. Video released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement showed agents lining up workers, frisking them, and shackling some around their hands, ankles, and waist. Most were transferred to an immigration detention center in Folkston, near the Florida state line. Homeland Security Investigations official Steven Schrank said some workers had entered the U.S. illegally, while others overstayed visas or entered on visa waivers that prohibited employment. No detainees have been charged, and the investigation is ongoing. Kang said Seoul will push to review and improve visa systems for workers traveling to the U.S. for major investment projects. — Agencies
