(LEAD) 3 student activists arrested over alleged infiltration into U.S. air base

Pyeongtaek, South Korea, Aug. 6 (Yonhap) -- Police apprehended three student activists on Thursday for allegedly breaching a U.S. air base in South Korea earlier in the week. Police detained the three individuals at a Pyeongtaek station after a Pyeongtaek branch of the Suwon District Court issued arrest warrants. On Tuesday, eight members of the Korean Progressive University Student Union, comprising the three arrested, aimed to infiltrate the K-55 Osan Air Base's principal gate in Pyeongtaek, roughly 60 kilometers south of Seoul.

Six infiltrators entered the base, while the remaining two were halted at the entrance. The U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) apprehended the student activists at the scene and transferred them to the Pyeongtaek Police Station. Four detainees were taken into custody, while four others were released. The four held in custody allegedly recorded themselves chanting anti-U.S. slogans directed at the 7th Air Force, accusing it of meddling in a semiconductor cluster project in the southwestern city of Gwangju due to concerns about its impact on U.S. military interests.

The group also denounced a recent white phosphorous leak at the base. The Suwon District Court issued arrest warrants for three of the activists following a hearing earlier that day. However, the court refused to grant the warrant for one of them. Police intend to refer the three arrested to prosecutors for potential indictment following a completed investigation, while they persist in probing the remaining activists.