September 6, 2025

Hold on tight! The largest immigration raid during President Donald Trump's second term just shook a Hyundai factory in Georgia. Around 500 workers were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at the sprawling 3,000-acre site, which was built by the Korean company to make electric vehicles and has been running for a year. Here's the twist: a whopping 300 of those detained are South Korean nationals! Why did this happen? The Department of Homeland Security told the BBC they had a search warrant because of "unlawful employment practices and other serious federal crimes." ICE officials said these workers were either in the U.S. illegally or working without proper permission. They are now held at an ICE facility in Folkston, Georgia, while officials decide their next move. Social media videos showed agents lining up workers and telling them about the search warrant. You see agents chatting with some employees too. Hyundai quickly responded, saying, "We are aware of the recent incident at the HL-GA Battery Company construction site in Bryan County, Georgia," and added, "As of today, it is our understanding that none of those detained is directly employed by Hyundai Motor Company." Steven Schrank, special agent at Homeland Security Investigations, called it the "largest single site enforcement operation" in the agency’s 20-year history! But don’t think it was a sudden raid. Schrank emphasized, "This has been a multi-month criminal investigation where we have developed evidence, conducted interviews, gathered documents and presented that evidence... in order to obtain a judicial search warrant." Many arrested workers had broken their visitor visa rules. ICE said, "People on short-term or recreational visas are not authorized to work in the U.S." And the agency defended the raid saying it was important "to protect American jobs." President Trump stood firm, saying, "They were illegal aliens and ICE was just doing its job." He blamed some of the workers entering illegally under the current administration, stating, "These [workers] are people that came through with Biden. They came through illegally." The raid also sparked a strong reaction in South Korea. President Lee Jae Myung ordered "all-out efforts" to support those arrested, and Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said a special task force was set up. Cho expressed a serious responsibility and might visit Washington. He stressed, "The economic activities of Korean investment companies and the rights and interests of Korean citizens must not be unfairly infringed upon during U.S. law enforcement operations." This drama at Hyundai shows how immigration issues and international business can clash fiercely, shaking the lives of hundreds and sparking diplomatic tensions. Stay tuned as this story develops!

Read More at Economictimes →

Tags: Hyundai raid, Georgia factory, Immigration arrest, South korean nationals, Ice operation, Trump immigration crackdown,