Afghanistan To Deport Korean Evangelicals

Over 1,000 Koreans who went to Afghanistan to participate in a “peace festival” will be deported under the orders of President Hamid Karzai, an Afghan official said Wednesday.

The evangelists will be expelled "soonest possible because we cannot guarantee their safety here," the high-ranking official said. He said that although the South Koreans were warned not to "preach religion" while in the country, they have been seen trying to evangelize Muslims in some regions. "This can be terribly provocative and can create problems for Afghan government," he said. He said the Afghan government has made this decision in coordination with the South Korean embassy in Kabul.

According to a source with the Institute of Asian Culture and Development, who organized the event, a few Koreans were injured when Afghan police tried to subdue them, but that claim was disputed by a staffer who was present.

Choi Han-woo, the head of the IACD, claimed Afghan local authorities and people were “cooperating greatly.”

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