President Lee Jae Myung presides over a meeting with senior presidential aides at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, Thursday. YonhapIsrael has released two Korean nationals who were detained while trying to provide humanitarian aid for Gaza, Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday.Their release came a day after President Lee Jae Myung criticized Israel for detaining the pair in violation of international norms, pointing to the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and referring to him as a “war criminal,” in what was seen as an unusually direct remark at the highest diplomatic level. “The Lee Jae Myung government expresses strong regret over Israel’s detention of our citizens following the seizure of the vessels. At the same time, it highly appreciates and welcomes Israel’s prompt release of our nationals,” presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said during a press briefing.She referred to two Korean nationals, each aboard separate vessels seized by the Israeli navy in international waters, one near Cyprus on Monday and the other near Gaza on Tuesday.Kang noted that Lee had expressed concern over the safety and rights of the detained Koreans during a Cabinet meeting a day earlier, and that the government pursued all measures for consular assistance and diplomatic response.“As a result, Israel released the two Koreans directly without placing them in detention facilities, and instead deported them promptly,” Kang said. The two are expected to arrive in Korea on Friday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.“The Israeli government expressed hope that this incident will not affect bilateral relations and that the relationship will continue to develop further," Kang added.She emphasized that the Lee administration “will respond in a principled and responsible manner to safeguard its citizens, including by addressing international human rights issues,” and added that it will maintain close diplomatic communication with relevant countries.“The safety and sovereignty of our citizens are of paramount importance,” the spokesperson said. "The Lee Jae Myung government will fulfill its responsibility as an administration that prioritizes and protects the lives and safety of its people."Regarding Lee’s remarks on the ICC arrest warrant issued for Netanyahu, Kang explained that they were made to “emphasize the need for an objective understanding of the situation.”During Wednesday's Cabinet meeting, Lee asked his aides whether nearly all European countries have issued their own arrest warrants for Netanyahu and whether they had announced plans to arrest him if he enters their territory, adding Korea should also consider making its own judgment.Lee’s criticism of Israel and Netanyahu drew widespread attention, as they were seen as unusually strong comments made at the highest diplomatic level. The criticism also followed diplomatic unease between Korea and Israel over Lee's social media post in April, in which the president reposted a video depicting Israeli soldiers throwing a body from a building and drew an analogy between the Holocaust and Israel’s human rights violations against Palestinians. His post drew condemnation from Israel, which found it trivializing of the World War II-era atrocity.Jang Ji-hyang, principal fellow and director of the Center for Regional Studies at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, said that Lee’s remarks “could be more diplomatically sensitive than previous social media controversies, as the comments involved detained Korean nationals in Israel, as well as references to the personal security of a sitting prime minister.”