An intriguing statement. Agents from the American Immigration Police (ICE) will come on a support mission to Italy for the Winter Olympics (February 6-22), an ICE spokesperson said Tuesday.
“At the Olympics, ICE’s Homeland Security Service (HSI) will support the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, as well as the host nation, to assess and mitigate risks related to transnational criminal organizations,” ICE said in a statement.
“Obviously, ICE does not conduct immigration operations abroad,” the agency said. And “all security operations remain under the authority of Italy”.
“It is clear that they are not welcome in Milan, there is no doubt,” said Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala on RTL radio on Tuesday. 102.5. The elected official believes that the presence during the Milan-Cortina Olympics of this “militia that kills” and “enters people’s homes by issuing their own authorization” was a “problem”.
The potential presence of ICE agents at the Games, from February 6 to 22, sparked heated debate in Italy, while two American citizens were killed by its agents in Minneapolis (northern United States).
Thousands of ICE agents have been deployed by President Donald Trump to various US cities as part of a campaign against illegal immigration.
“A defensive role”
Italian authorities first denied the presence of ICE agents, then tried to downplay their role, suggesting they would only help ensure the security of the American delegation.
US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are scheduled to attend the opening ceremony in Milan on February 6.
On Monday, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi stressed that “ICE as such will never operate in Italy, because the management of public order, immigration and security is the responsibility of our police forces.”
“If ever, completely hypothetically, isolated units belonging to American security organizations were to arrive, they would in any case be deployed in a functional and non-operational manner,” he told Italian media.
The president of the Lombardy region in the north of the country, which hosts part of the competitions, said their involvement would be limited to monitoring JD Vance and Marco Rubio. “It will only be a defensive role, but I am convinced that nothing will happen,” Attilio Fontana told reporters.
But his team later issued a statement saying he had no information about their presence, and that he was responding to a hypothetical question.
