Overview

• ICE says the Ellabell operation detained about 475 people, including more than 300 South Koreans, in what it called its largest single-site enforcement action targeting visa violations and unauthorized employment.
• A State Department readout of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s meeting with South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun did not mention the detained workers.
• A Korean Air charter landed in Atlanta to return the South Korean detainees, but airport officials and Seoul said the outbound flight was canceled or delayed due to U.S. circumstances.
• Immigration lawyers contend many of the South Koreans held B-1 business visas as engineers or technical installers, a characterization disputed by ICE’s focus on employment violations.
• Hyundai says none of those detained were its direct employees, with 47 working for LG Energy Solution and the rest hired by subcontractors, as detainees are processed at facilities including Folkston while the investigation continues.