Hundreds Protest ICE Presence At Milan Olympics Control Room

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Piazza XXV Aprile in Milan on Jan. 29 to demand the withdrawal of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents assigned to a control-room security role for the Feb. 6 Winter Olympics, organizers said.

The protest, attended by members of the Democratic Party, the CGIL trade union confederation and ANPI, was sparked by social media images of ICE operations in Minneapolis and reflects broader unease over U.S. immigration enforcement, protesters said.

Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said ICE officers were "not welcome in Milan" in a radio interview, while Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi told Parliament on Jan. 29 he had not seen confirmation of ICE presence and "didn't see what the problem would be," marking conflicting official accounts.

Italian authorities detailed an Olympics security plan assigning more than 3,000 police officers, about 2,000 Carabinieri and over 800 Guardia di Finanza to venues, officials said, and said ICE personnel would operate from U.S. diplomatic facilities without street patrols.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi is scheduled to testify before Parliament this week about the ICE deployment and activists have planned an "ICE OUT" rally for Feb. 6, raising the prospect of renewed protests during the opening ceremony attended by U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.