ICE Brutal in the US, Will Be Involved in Security for the 2026 Italian Winter Olympics

JAKARTA - Officers from the branch of the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will be involved in securing the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy on February 6-22.

"At the Olympics, ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) supports the US Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service and the host country to examine and reduce the risks of transnational criminal organizations," said an ICE Italy statement quoted by AFP, Tuesday, January 27.

"All security operations remain under the authority of Italy," the statement continued.

In its track record, it is not known whether the HSI ICE has ever been involved in the Olympics in the past, or this involvement is the first time.

According to the ICE website, HSI investigates global threats, investigating the illegal movement of people, goods, money, contraband goods, weapons, and sensitive technology to, from, and through the US.

On the one hand, during overseas Olympics, the protection of US citizens has so far been led by the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) of the US State Department.

ICE explained that its operations in Italy are separate from the actions of its officers related to immigration in a number of US regions led by the Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) department.

"Clearly, ICE does not conduct immigration enforcement operations in foreign countries," ICE said.

The brutal operation of ICE officers in the state of Minnesota has caused casualties. An American citizen named Good, 37, was shot dead by ICE officers while sitting in his four-wheeled vehicle on January 7.

About three weeks later, another US citizen named Alex Pretti, 37, was also killed by the ICE officers' repressive gunfire in the same city.