Rioters have attacked an additional four South Korean-run construction sites in Libya, an official said Wednesday, fueling concern about the safety of South Korean workers in the African nation.
Vehicles were stolen from three of the four sites, but there were no casualties, the foreign ministry official said without providing further details, such as how many intruders raided the sites.
The raids were the latest in a series of attacks on Korean-run construction sites in Libya amid fanning anti-government protests. The attacks fueled concern about the safety of about 1,400 South Koreans staying in the country, most of them construction firm workers.
South Korea has already issued its second-highest travel warning for all of Libya, telling its citizens to leave the country unless they are on urgent and unavoidable trips, and to cancel or postpone nonessential visits there.
South Korea's embassy in Libya has also been advising Koreans there to leave the country.
On Tuesday, nine South Korean workers left Libya and arrived in Egypt via an overland route in what is believed to be the first such evacuation. More departures are expected.
South Korean ambassador to Libya Jo Dae-sik, who had been in Seoul for an annual conference of diplomatic mission chiefs, left for Libya on Tuesday to oversee safety measures. The envoy is expected to arrive later Wednesday in Tunisia, from which he plans to use an overland route to Libya.
Officials said they are discussing with firms operating in Libya ways to get people out of the country amid disruptions of operations at the airport in the capital of Tripoli. Possible options include using ships to Europe or vehicles to nearby Tunisia, they said.
The latest wave of raids on Korean construction sites began last Friday when hundreds of Libyans entered a site in Derna in eastern Libya and set fire to buildings. Officials said anti-government protests appear to have fueled the rioting, which is believed to have started over discontent with the government's housing policy.