US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents will play a security role during the upcoming Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, drawing the ire among some Italian officials on Tuesday.
According to sources at the US Embassy in Rome, who shared information with Italian outlets on Tuesday, federal agents would support diplomatic security details and would not conduct any immigration enforcement operations.
In a statement overnight 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 organisations.
“All security operations remain under Italian authority.”
During previous Olympics, several federal agencies have supported security for US diplomats, including the investigative component of ICE called Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the sources said.
According to the ICE website, the HSI investigates global threats, investigating 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 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 US State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service does this as well, routinely supporting events like the Olympics.
During the 2016 Rio Olympics, the US Transportation Security Administration deployed officers to assist with airport screening amid a surge in visitors and the potential threat of attacks.
Citing images of masked ICE agents that have dominated coverage of unrest in Minneapolis, Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said that ICE would not be welcome in his city, which is hosting most ice sports during the 6-22 February Winter Games.
“This is a militia that kills, a militia that enters into the homes of people, signing their own permission slips. It is clear they are not welcome in Milan, without a doubt,” Sala told RTL Radio 102 before ICE’s deployment to the Games was confirmed.
Alessandro Zan, a MEP 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.
‘I don’t see what the problem would be’
ICE’s role had been reported over the weekend by the Italian daily il Fatto Quotidiano, prompting conflicting statements from Italian authorities who did not want to appear to confirm the agency’s role.
Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said on Saturday he had not received confirmation of ICE’s deployment, but added that “I don’t see what the problem would be,” the news agency ANSA reported.
The Italian Interior Ministry on Tuesday repeated that the US has not confirmed the makeup of its security detail but insisted that “at the moment there are no indications that ICE … will act as an escort to the US delegation.”
US Vice President JD Vance will lead a delegation attending the 6 February opening ceremony. The delegation will also include second lady Usha Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the White House announced earlier this month.
The confirmation of ICE’s role in Olympic security comes after RAI state TV aired video on Sunday of ICE agents threatening to break the glass on the vehicle of a RAI crew reporting in Minneapolis, where ICE operations have sparked mass demonstrations.
In the past three weeks, federal officers in Minneapolis have shot and killed two protesters against deportations and immigration enforcement.
Torch relay
Meanwhile, the Olympic torch arrived in Cortina d’Ampezzo in northern Italy on Tuesday, where it was welcomed by Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini and Veneto’s regional president, Alberto Stefani.
The torch relay, which started in Belluno, passed through several of the town’s historic sporting landmarks, including Pian da Lago, the Italia ski-jumping hill, the historic Olympia delle Tofane ski slope and the Cortina d’Ampezzo ice stadium.
The final three torchbearers were former Winter Olympians including alpine skier Bruno Alberti, speed skater Carlo Calzà and figure skater Manuela Angeli.
Video editor • Lucy Davalou
Additional sources • AP, AFP
