S. Korean survivors set to return home from Yemen

By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, March 17 (Yonhap) -- A dozen South Koreans, including several survivors of
a deadly bombing in Yemen that authorities there suspect is linked to al-Qaeda,
were to return to Seoul later Tuesday.

A bomb went off in the ancient city of Shibam, about 900km east of the Yemeni
capital, Sanna, Sunday night (Seoul time), killing four South Korean tourists,
including two women, and wounding three others on a group tour to the Arab
country known for militant activity targeting foreigners.
Foreign news agencies quoted local security officials as saying that an
18-year-old who had been "tricked by al-Qaeda into wearing an explosives vest"
carried out the attack.
The Yemeni government has yet to announce the results of its investigation.
The 12 South Koreans who were part of the tour group were on their way back home,
said Kim Yu-chul, director of the foreign ministry's consular affairs division.
"They will arrive at Incheon International Airport in the afternoon," he said,
adding another wounded South Korean will remain in Yemen for medical treatment.
He said it would take at least two more days to bring back the bodies of the
dead, citing administrative procedures. "We are making efforts to transfer them
back to South Korea as early as possible," he said.
If confirmed to be a terrorist attack, the incident will alert South Koreans to
the fact that they are not immune from terrorism while abroad. Millions of South
Koreans travel overseas, and millions more live in foreign countries.
A government official in Seoul, however, was cautious about drawing conclusions
on the cause of the blast.
"The Yemeni authorities are still looking into the case. It is not appropriate to
state our position before the Yemeni government formally concludes its
investigation," the official said. He added that a South Korean police officer, a
member of a government team dispatched to Yemen, will take part in the probe. The
team, also involving an agent from the state intelligence agency and two foreign
ministry officials, is scheduled to arrive there on Tuesday.
The incident is likely to pressure the South Korean government to take more
prompt and stern measures to keep its nationals away from danger zones abroad.
Officials say imposing a travel ban to Yemen is a sensitive issue, as the measure
would hurt bilateral ties.
The government has designated all regions throughout Yemen as a "travel
restriction area," a non-biding advisory that strongly urges people not to travel
there. It may have to impose a travel ban on the region, pending the outcome of
the ongoing investigation.
South Koreans are prohibited from visiting Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia. In
Iraq, a South Korean worker was kidnapped and beheaded by a local terrorist
network in 2004. In 2007, 23 South Korean church volunteers were abducted by the
Taliban in Afghanistan. Two of them were executed before all others were released
after weeks of captivity.
South Korean ships are common targets for pirates off Somali waters.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)