“A Killing Militia.” Anger in Italy after reports of ICE agents being deployed to the Winter Olympics

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement employees will be involved in protecting US delegations at the Winter Olympics in Italy, a US embassy source said on Tuesday, confirming reports in local media about the presence of ICE agents and angering some politicians on the Peninsula, Reuters writes.

ICE and Border Patrol agents have come under fire in the United States for enforcing President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown, especially after two U.S. citizens were fatally shot in separate incidents this month in the state of Minnesota.

The embassy source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said ICE's Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) division will support the US State Department's security service at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, which will be held from February 6-22.

HSI agents will not carry out any immigration enforcement activities during their stay in Italy, but rather will aim to “mitigate the risks posed by transnational criminal organizations,” the source said, without elaborating.

“All security operations remain under Italian authority,” the source added.

HSI has had a past presence at major sporting events both in the U.S. and abroad, including previous Olympics, as part of international partnerships related to human trafficking and drug trafficking, a former official said.

ICE spokesmen did not immediately respond to questions about the operation in Italy. A State Department spokesman said that, as with previous Olympics, several federal agencies will help provide security, including HSI.

Italian politicians call for ban on ICE agents

Despite assurances that there is nothing unusual about HSI's deployment, Italian politicians have criticized ICE's involvement in next month's Olympics, indicating how the United States' image has been tarnished in recent months.

“It seems pure idiocy to me,” Maurizio Lupi, leader of a small centrist party in Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's governing coalition, told La Repubblica daily.

Giuseppe Sala, the left-wing mayor of Milan, one of the host cities of the Olympics, called ICE “a militia that kills”.

In an interview with radio station RTL 102.5, Sala said: “It is clear that they are not welcome in Milan, there is no doubt about that.”

Italy's foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, called for a measured reaction. “We're not talking about (ICE people) who were on the streets of Minneapolis … It's not like the SS (Nazi, no) arrived,” he told reporters at a Holocaust memorial event.

While many US ICE agents have been deployed to support immigration enforcement, HSI's mission is to focus on transnational crime.

But Italia Viva, a centrist opposition party led by former prime minister Matteo Renzi, said ICE-affiliated agents do not represent Italian values ​​and should be banned from the country.

The hard-left union USB has announced that it will hold an “ICE OUT” rally in central Milan on February 6, to coincide with the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games.