Kim Ah-hyun, who attempted to enter the Gaza Strip in Palestine—a designated travel ban region—has lost a lawsuit filed against the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to revoke the invalidation of her passport.

The Seoul Administrative Court’s 12th Administrative Division ruled against the plaintiff on the 27th in a lawsuit filed by Kim against the Minister of Foreign Affairs seeking the cancellation of a passport return order, Yonhap News reported.

Last October, while traveling to Gaza, a restricted travel zone, via a relief flotilla, Kim was detained by the Israeli military after her vessel was seized. She was released from a local prison two days later.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a passport return order, but Kim left the country in March for another voyage before the order could be served. Her passport was subsequently invalidated, prompting her to file an administrative lawsuit. Under the Passport Act, if a return order is not complied with, the passport’s validity is automatically revoked.

At the time, there was controversy over whether the vessel’s purpose was truly humanitarian.

The court determined that the Foreign Ministry’s order to return the passport was a protective measure for Kim and could not be seen as an excessive restriction on her freedom of residence and movement.

The court explained, "Considering the risks faced by Kim and the importance of the public interest the measure seeks to achieve, it was reasonable for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to conclude that there were no protective alternatives other than the passport return order."

The court further added, "It cannot be concluded that the passport return order violated the principle of proportionality by excessively restricting Kim's freedom."