As of Thursday, Seoul's Foreign Ministry raised its travel advisory for Ethiopia's northern Tigray region, advising evacuation.

This follows reports of armed clashes between federal forces and the Tigray People's Liberation Front that have caused mass casualties, sparking safety concerns for Korean residents in the African nation.

The ministry advises South Koreans to cancel or postpone travel to this region. Those who are already there are asked to evacuate as soon as possible unless an important matter is barring their departure.

The Seoul government operates a four-tier travel alert system comprising the stages of caution, restraint, evacuation and an outright travel ban.