This representation from video provided by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement via DVIDS shows manufacturing works employees waiting to person their legs shackled astatine the Hyundai Motor Group’s electrical conveyance plant, connected Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025, successful Ellabell, Ga.
Corey Bullard | U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement via AP
More than 300 South Korean workers detained pursuing a monolithic migration raid astatine a Hyundai works successful Georgia volition beryllium released and brought home, the South Korean authorities announced Sunday.
Presidential main of unit Kang Hoon-sik said that South Korea and the U.S. had finalized negotiations connected the workers' release. He said South Korea plans to nonstop a charter level to bring the workers location arsenic soon arsenic the remaining administrative steps are completed.
U.S. migration authorities said Friday they detained 475 people, astir of them South Korean nationals, erstwhile hundreds of national agents raided Hyundai's sprawling manufacturing tract successful Georgia wherever the Korean automaker Hyundai makes electrical vehicles. South Korea's Foreign Minister Cho Hyun aboriginal said that much than 300 South Koreans were among the detained.
The cognition was the latest successful a agelong enactment of workplace raids conducted arsenic portion of the Trump administration's wide deportation agenda. But the 1 connected Thursday is exceptionally chiseled due to the fact that of its ample size and the information that it targeted a manufacturing site, authorities officials person agelong called Georgia's largest economical improvement project.
Video released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement connected Saturday showed a caravan of vehicles driving up to the tract and past national agents directing workers to enactment up outside. Some detainees were ordered to enactment their hands up against a autobus arsenic they were frisked and past shackled astir their hands, ankles and waist.
Agents focused their cognition connected a works that is inactive nether construction, astatine which Hyundai has partnered with LG Energy Solution to nutrient batteries that powerfulness EVs.
Most of the radical detained were taken to an migration detention halfway successful Folkston, Georgia, adjacent the Florida authorities line. None has been charged with immoderate crimes yet, Steven Schrank, the pb Georgia cause of Homeland Security Investigations, said during a quality league Friday, adding that the probe is ongoing.
The South Korean government, a adjacent U.S. ally, expressed "concern and regret" implicit the raid targeting its citizens and sent diplomats to the site.