Actor Jung Woo-sung / Courtesy of Plus M Entertainment

Actor Jung Woo-sung has stepped down from his position as a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) after nine years, his agency said Monday.

Jung resigned from the position on July 3, according to Artist Company.

He did not publicly disclose a reason for his departure, but the "12.12: The Day" actor revealed during an interview with a local weekly magazine earlier this month that he had been a constant target of online attacks from those who viewed his UNHCR activities through political lens.

"Both UNHCR and I were repeatedly targeted by political attacks, with efforts to ascribe political motives to my actions," the actor said, leading to a "difficult situation for both."

Since he began working with UNHCR in 2014, he had visited many conflict regions, including Lebanon, South Sudan and Poland. In 2019, he published an essay collection about his UNHCR activities.

In June 2018, the actor faced political backlash when he shared a post online to encourage wider acceptance of refugees amid social division over Yemeni refugees arriving at the southern resort island of Jeju.

"Watching the public's anxiety that arriving refugees could trigger political instability and a religious crisis left me feeling confused as well," the actor said. "Although the sense of nervousness was palpable, nothing of the sort actually occurred."

Reflecting on his past work with UNHCR, he said he helped "clarify and deepen the understanding and perception of refugees, which had previously been vague in Korean society."

While expressing his desire to focus solely on his acting career, he pledged to maintain his interest in various social issues, including those affecting sexual minorities. (Yonhap)