Passengers line up for boarding procedures at the departure hall of Incheon International Airport Terminal 1 on Wednesday. The photo is not directly related to the article. Yonhap
Police in Korea delayed the departure of an international flight Monday to prevent a man in his 60s from leaving the country to seek assisted death in Switzerland, authorities said.
According to the Incheon International Airport Police Corps, the incident occurred at Incheon International Airport and involved a man identified only as A, who was scheduled to depart on a Paris-bound flight at 12:05 p.m.
Police received an emergency call from a family member at about 9:30 a.m. saying A was suspected of planning to travel overseas to end his life through assisted death. Officers met him at the airport at about 10 a.m. but allowed him to proceed after he described his trip as travel to Switzerland.
At about 11:50 a.m., relatives discovered a letter and alerted police. Authorities then delayed the Paris-bound flight’s departure.
Officers boarded the aircraft and escorted the man off before engaging him in prolonged discussions. He was later allowed to return to his family, police said.
The man had been diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis and was believed to be planning to travel to Switzerland via Paris.
In Switzerland, euthanasia — in which physicians directly administer lethal drugs — is illegal. Assisted suicide, in which patients administer the medication themselves with medical assistance, is permitted.
This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.
Source: Korea Times News
