Senior presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung briefs reporters at Cheong Wa Dae on Thursday on the release of two Korean nationals detained aboard Gaza-bound aid flotillas. (Yonhap) Israel has released the two South Korean activists who were detained by its navy aboard Gaza-bound aid flotillas, Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday.“The Lee Jae Myung government expresses strong regret over Israel’s arrest of Korean nationals through its seizure of Gaza-bound aid vessels,” senior presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said during a live broadcast press briefing. “However, we welcome and highly appreciate Israel’s immediate release of our nationals.”The two activists had been aboard separate Gaza-bound aid flotillas intercepted by Israeli forces earlier this week, according to the Korean Flotilla for a Free Palestine.The group said the Lina Al Nabulsi, carrying South Korean activist Kim Ah-hyun, was intercepted near the Gaza Strip early Wednesday, Seoul time, following Israel’s seizure Monday of the Kyriakos X, which was carrying South Korean activist Kim Dong-hyeon and activists from several other countries.Kang said the government made efforts to secure the release of the Korean nationals after President Lee Jae Myung publicly questioned the legality and humanitarian implications of Israeli forces intercepting aid flotillas carrying Korean nationals bound for the Gaza Strip in international waters.During a weekly Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Lee ordered officials to review the legal aspects surrounding the seizure of vessels carrying Korean nationals in international waters.“Accordingly, the government made every effort to provide necessary consular assistance and diplomatic responses,” Kang said. “As a result, the Israeli side exceptionally deported the two Korean nationals immediately without sending them through detention facilities.”However, Cheong Wa Dae did not disclose further details, including the timing of their deportation.Kang added that “the Israeli side said it hoped Korea-Israel relations would not be affected by this matter and will continue to develop further.”Kim Ah-hyun had previously been detained by Israeli forces in October last year after joining an aid flotilla protesting the blockade of the Gaza Strip. She was released two days later after being held in a local prison.After Kim said in a media interview in January that she intended to join another aid mission with other South Korean activists, the Foreign Ministry in Seoul ordered her to return her passport and later invalidated it, citing safety concerns.The Gaza Strip is currently designated as an area where South Koreans are banned from visiting or staying without government permission under the Passport Act. Those who enter or stay in the area without approval may face up to one year in prison or a fine of up to 10 million won.