97 Koreans and their families in Lebanon returned home today by military transport plane.

Amid the recent rapid deterioration of the situation in the Middle East, 97 people, including Koreans and their families in Lebanon, will return home today (5th) on a government-provided military transport plane (KC-330).

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Defense to issue joint press release,
A military transport plane carrying 97 people, including 96 Koreans and their families, has entered the Korea Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) and will soon land at Seongnam Seoul Airport.

The government's deployment of military transport aircraft comes after President Yoon Suk Yeol held an emergency economic and security meeting on the 2nd and ordered the immediate input of military assets for the safe withdrawal of our people.

The government dispatched a military transport plane and a quick response team to Lebanon on the 3rd, and the military transport plane arrived in Beirut on the morning of the 4th local time and departed for Korea in the afternoon of the same day.

The government emphasized that it will continue to closely monitor the situation in the Middle East and continue to take various safety measures to ensure the safety of our people staying in the Middle East.

Since the withdrawal, more than 30 Koreans remain in Lebanon, and more than 480 people are staying in Israel.

Since July, the government has strongly urged South Koreans who have been staying in Lebanon and Israel to leave the country on available flights and ships as soon as possible.

However, after the recent ground war between Israel and Lebanon began, it has become difficult to leave Lebanon by civilian flights, and the government has decided to deploy military transport planes in light of this situation and the withdrawal trends of other countries, including the UK.