S. Korea extends travel bans to Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia

By Tony Chang
SEOUL, May 21 (Yonhap) -- South Korea extended travel bans for nationals heading
to Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia due to continued security concerns in the
countries, the foreign minister said Thursday.
Yu Myung-hwan said in a press briefing that the government decided to extend the
travel bans to Afghanistan and Somalia by one year, effective Aug. 6. The ban
will also be prolonged by six months to Iraq and will take effect at the same
time, he said.
Violators can be punished by a maximum one-year imprisonment or up to 3 million
won (US$2,730) in fines.
An unofficial travel prohibition was imposed on Iraq soon after a South Korean
worker was kidnapped and beheaded by a local terrorist network there in 2004. In
2007, 23 South Korean church volunteers were abducted by the Taliban in
Afghanistan. Two of them were executed before the others were released after
weeks of captivity.
A formal travel ban went into effect for the three countries in August 2007.
Yu said the government, however, will expedite approvals of special passports for
those seeking to travel to the countries under special government-sponsored
cases, such as officials from companies participating in reconstruction projects
in Iraq.
"The approval process for business officials visiting the countries for the first
time is expected to be completed within four to seven days, whereas it initially
took more than three weeks," Yu said.
Those traveling to the countries with government permission must have insurance
for war casualties, he said.
odissy@yna.co.kr
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