A civic group has requested the United States to return royal seals that it claims were illegally taken out of South Korea by the U.S. military during the Korean War.
 
The International Organization on Retrieval of Korean National Treasures made the request on the White House’s online petition site, “We the People.”
 
The organization said it “respectfully requests” that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security return eleven Joseon Dynasty Royal Seals when U.S. President Barack Obama visits Seoul in April.
 
As of Saturday morning, Korea time, a total of 851 people had signed the petition.
 
Last November, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it had seized nine Joseon Dynasty royal seals in San Diego, California. Such seals were illegally taken out of South Korea by U.S. military troops from Deoksu Palace during the Korean War.