Massive ICE Raid at Hyundai Plant in Georgia Results in Detention of 300 South Korean Workers; Release and Repatriation Imminent, Announces South Korean Government

SOUTH KOREA — Following intensive negotiations between South Korean and US officials, approximately 300 South Korean workers detained during a significant immigration sweep at a Hyundai plant in Georgia will be repatriated. The announcement was made by the South Korean government on Sunday.

Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik confirmed that the negotiations for the release of the workers had been finalized. He stated that a charter plane would be dispatched to bring them home as soon as any remaining administrative procedures were completed.

On Friday, US immigration authorities reported detaining 475 individuals, predominantly South Korean nationals, during an extensive operation at Hyundai’s substantial manufacturing facility in Georgia. This site is where Hyundai produces electric vehicles. According to South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, more than 300 South Koreans were among those detained.

This operation was part of a series of workplace raids conducted under the Trump administration’s mass deportation policy. However, this particular raid on Thursday stands out due to its scale and the targeting of a manufacturing site that Georgia officials have consistently identified as the state’s largest economic development project.

Footage released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Saturday depicted a convoy of vehicles approaching the site, followed by federal agents instructing workers to line up outside. Some detainees were directed to place their hands against a bus for search and subsequent shackling of their hands, ankles, and waist.

The focus of the operation was on a plant under construction, where Hyundai has collaborated with LG Energy Solution to produce batteries for electric vehicles.

Most of the detainees were transported to an immigration detention center in Folkston, Georgia, near the Florida border. As of Friday’s news conference, no one had been charged with any crimes, and Steven Schrank, the lead Georgia agent from Homeland Security Investigations, emphasized that the investigation was ongoing.

The South Korean government, a key US ally, has expressed “concern and regret” over the raid affecting its citizens and has dispatched diplomats to the site.