Rome (AFP) – A branch of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will help with security for the Winter Olympics in Italy, it confirmed Tuesday, sparking anger and warnings they were not welcome. Reports had been circulating for days that the agency embroiled in an often brutal immigration crackdown in the United States could be involved in US security measures for the February 6-22 Games in northern Italy.
In a statement to AFP, ICE said: “At the Olympics, ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is supporting the US Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service and host nation to vet and mitigate risks from transnational criminal organizations. All security operations remain under Italian authority.” The State Department said that the HSI has in the past taken part in other Olympic events.
“As in previous Olympic events, multiple federal agencies are supporting the Diplomatic Security Service, including Homeland Security Investigations, ICE’s investigative component,” a State Department spokesperson said. “For the Olympics, the United States is preparing an operations room at its consulate in Milan where representatives from U.S. agencies potentially interested in the event will be present,” Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said in a statement after a meeting with the US ambassador in Rome. “Experts from the Department of Homeland Security will also be in this same room,” he added.
According to Piantedosi, these experts are present “in more than 50 countries and have been in Italy for years as well,” emphasizing that “security operations within the country are the sole responsibility of the Italian authorities.” Piantedosi specified that approximately 6,000 law enforcement personnel would be deployed, along with the use of drones and other aerial surveillance equipment, to ensure security at the Games.
According to the ICE website, the HSI investigates global threats, including the illegal movement of people, goods, money, contraband, weapons, and sensitive technology into, out of, and through the United States. ICE made clear its operations in Italy were separate from the domestic immigration crackdown, which is being carried out by the Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) department. “Obviously, ICE does not conduct immigration enforcement operations in foreign countries,” it said.
The protection of US citizens during Olympic Games overseas is led by the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS). Yet the outrage over ICE immigration operations in the United States is shared among many in Italy, following the deaths of two civilians during an immigration crackdown in Minneapolis. The leftist mayor of Milan, which is hosting several Olympic events, said ICE was “not welcome.”
“This is a militia that kills. It’s clear that they are not welcome in Milan, there’s no doubt about it,” Giuseppe Sala told RTL 102.5 radio. “Can’t we just say no to (US President Donald) Trump for once?” Alessandro Zan, a member of the European Parliament for the centre-left Democratic Party, condemned it as “unacceptable.” “In Italy, we don’t want those who trample on human rights and act outside of any democratic control,” he wrote on X.
Italian authorities initially denied the presence of ICE and then sought to downplay any role, suggesting they would help only in security for the US delegation. US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are attending the opening ceremony in Milan on February 6. Giovanni Malago, president of the Milan-Cortina organizing committee, said he believed ICE agents would be present “for the high-ranking US government officials” and have “nothing to do with the Games’ security aspects.” “It’s not about the Olympics, but about individuals,” he said.
The International Olympic Committee, when contacted by AFP, replied that “security at the Olympic Games is the responsibility of the authorities of the host country, who work closely with the participating delegations.” “We kindly refer you to the USOPC (the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee),” it said.
© 2024 AFP
