South Korea to Investigate Rights Abuses in US Raid on Korean Workers
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – South Korea said it is probing potential human rights violations after hundreds of its citizens were detained in a US immigration raid.
A presidential spokesperson on Monday voiced “strong regret” over the incident and demanded Washington ensure the rights of Korean nationals are not infringed during law enforcement operations.
More than 300 workers returned to Seoul on Friday after being held for a week following a raid at a Hyundai electric vehicle battery plant in Georgia.
The crackdown has strained ties between the allies, even as South Korean firms prepare to invest billions of dollars in the United States to avoid punitive tariffs.
Authorities in Seoul said they will work with affected companies to “thoroughly investigate any potential human rights violations or other issues.”
The raid has fueled anger in South Korea, with President Lee Jae-myung warning it could undermine foreign investment in the United States.
Calling the situation “bewildering,” Lee noted it is standard practice for Korean companies to send workers abroad to help establish factories.
Hyundai has since announced that the plant’s opening will be delayed by at least two months.
South Korea’s trade unions have demanded an official apology from President Donald Trump.
On Sept. 4, around 475 people — mostly South Korean nationals — were arrested at the site in what US officials described as the largest immigration raid since Trump intensified his crackdown on foreign workers this year.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement said the Koreans had overstayed visas or lacked work permits.
One worker told the BBC the raid triggered panic and confusion as federal agents stormed the facility, with some employees led away in chains.
Trump, however, struck a contradictory tone, saying foreign experts are “welcome” and that the US should learn from their skills in fields like shipbuilding and chipmaking.
“We welcome them, we welcome their employees, and we are willing to proudly say we will learn from them, and do even better than them at their own ‘game,’ sometime in the not too distant future,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
