Foreign Ministry Issues Terrorism Response Manual To Prepare People For Possible Terrorist Attacks When Travelling Abroad

South Korea had always considered the neighboring North Korea as a primary security concern ever since the division of the Korean Peninsula in 1945. While this is true up to the present time, recent intelligence reports had raised another security concern for the South Korean government over the threats of Islamic extremism in the country.

Asia Times reported Thursday that the National Intelligence Service (NIS) has released new data related to the alleged attempts of some Korean nationals to join ISIS. The reported mentioned a number of South Korean migrant workers who had joined the Islamic terrorist group after leaving the country. It was also mentioned that 51 foreigners had been deported because of their reported ties to the group.

Song Dae Sung, a political science Professor at the University of Konkuk and a former South Korean Air Force Brigadier General, said that intelligence reports from the NIS "called for a new approach to terrorism" and that South Korea's future is in great danger.

"North Korea is an entity that is very good at provocations that change one's thinking and defy estimation. ISIS, too, is a brutal terror group. In the case of them being affiliated, the danger to South Korea could be severe," Song said.

The Foreign Ministry of South Korea has issued a terrorism response manual on Monday, a tool perceived to help its people deal with emergency situations when they are traveling in foreign countries, Yonhap News reported.

According to the report, the manual was initiated because of the terrorist attacks and threats in the Asian Peninsula, particularly the recent bombing incidents in Istanbul and Jakarta.

The guide provided important details to South Koreans on how to deal with incidents that involve kidnappings, hostage situations, guns, bombs, and chemical, radioactive, and biological agents.

"There is no place in the world that is safe from terrorism," the manual cautions.

South Korea has never experienced Islamic terrorism, but three of its citizens were killed by Islamic militants in 2004 and 2007 after being taken as hostages in Afghanistan and Iraq.