What is ICE’s mandate abroad and can it operate on foreign soil?

The fatal shootings of two Minneapolis residents, Renée Good and Alex Pretti, by agents from the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have sparked outrage far beyond the United States amid criticism that the agents used disproportionate force.

That anger intensified when Italian authorities confirmed that ICE personnel would be present in Italy during the Winter Olympics in Milan–Cortina, set to begin on Friday — prompting many to ask: can ICE even operate on foreign soil?

Experts point out that ICE’s main criminal investigative branch, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), has long operated overseas and can’t conduct any operation without the host country’s consent.

However, many Europeans worry that a longstanding US immigration agency, which has become increasingly politicised under President Donald Trump, could export its aggressive tactics abroad.

“If not for the excesses we have just witnessed and the way ICE has been used almost as Donald Trump’s personal militia, we would not be seeing this surge of protests aimed at HIS,” said Serge Jaumain, a professor of contemporary history at Belgium’s ULB.

What ICE does abroad

ICE was established in the aftermath of the 9/11 terror attacks on US soil to combat undocumented immigration, later expanding its mission to include identifying and dismantling potential terrorist cells within irregular migration flows.

Its HSI branch tackles transnational crime such as drug trafficking, child exploitation, financial fraud, intellectual property theft, and the recovery of stolen art and antiquities.

Romuald Sciora, an expert of the United States at the French Institute for International and Strategic Affairs (IRIS) said the HSI has more than 60 locations worldwide, including 52 international offices, primarily based within US embassies — most notably in Paris, London, Rome, Madrid, Mexico City, Bogotá, São Paulo, Tokyo, Bangkok, Cairo and Nairobi.

Agents are armed, Sciora said, and their mission abroad is slightly different from ICE’s domestic mandate.

“HSI is another branch of ICE deployed internationally to fight drug trafficking, cybercrime and any terrorist projects that could threaten US security or that of its citizens,” Sciora explained.

“In essence, it’s a second CIA — more outward-facing and present abroad.”

Dramatic changes under Trump

But Sciora and other experts acknowledged that since the return of Trump to the White House in 2025, ICE and HSI have undergone dramatic changes.

The so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” passed last July, allocated $75 billion (€63bn) to the agency over several years.

Of this, $45 billion (€37.8bn) is earmarked for detention centres, and around $30 billion (€25.2bn) for expanding arrests and deportations. ICE currently employs around 22,000 agents, with plans to recruit an additional 10,000 by 2029.

Trump and his administration have consistently defended ICE and its actions, citing success in reducing crime rates across the US. In turn, the US president has blamed Democrats for what he described as “chaos” of recent weeks.

“During the four years of crooked Joe Biden and Democrat failed leadership, tens of millions of illegal alien criminals poured into our country, including hundreds of thousands of convicted murderers, rapists, kidnappers, drug dealers, and terrorists,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform last Sunday.

“In the five Republican run states … ICE has arrested 150,245 criminal illegal aliens over the past year, with zero protests, riots, or chaos,” he added.

Under Trump, HSI has increasingly focused on irregular migration, and Sciora said it now investigates clandestine migration networks aimed at reaching the United States.

“Sometimes, operations are justified — particularly in Latin America or certain East Asian countries,” Sciora said. “But when ICE operates in Paris or London, one naturally wonders why… Yet this has become part of its mission, clearly tied to the Trump administration’s anti illegal immigration policy.”

HSI has occasionally acted “under the dubious pretext that a particular network or boat transporting migrants from Italy or France is ultimately aimed at enabling these undocumented immigrants to reach US territory,” he added.

However, Serge Jaumain, a professor of contemporary history at Belgium’s ULB university, played down both the perceived threat posed by HSI abroad and its role in combating illegal migration.

“This is a service tasked with border security, so it is not entirely unusual for it to operate outside the country,” he explained. “Other powers do the same thing.”

ICE at Winter Olympics

Tensions flared in Italy when HSI confirmed it would “support” local authorities in vetting and mitigating risks posed by transnational criminal organisations during the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics.

US Ambassador to Italy Tilman Fertitta emphasised that HSI agents would not patrol the streets but would maintain an advisory and intelligence-based role, focusing on cybercrime and national security threats.

“HSI focuses on cross-border criminal activity, from human smuggling, narcotics trafficking, and child exploitation, to financial crimes, intellectual property theft, and recovering stolen art and antiquities,” Fertitta said.

“Homeland Security Investigations works closely with domestic and international partners to protect national security and public safety, as it has for many years.”

Jaumain said he expects the agents sent to Italy to be “much better trained” than the young ICE recruits and not involved in migration issues.

“That said, one can of course understand the shock this causes within Italian public opinion and in global public opinion,” he added.

Controversy and international concerns

ICE’s international presence has raised concerns across Europe.

Last week, European lawmakers urged the EU to block ICE personnel from entering the continent after the agency confirmed that it would be involved in security operations during the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics.

Manon Aubry and Martin Schirdewan, co-presidents of The Left group in the European Parliament, sent a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and other institution leaders calling for “restrictive measures” against ICE agents and urging the EU to “prevent the entry of such forces onto its territory.”

They argued that ICE should not operate on European soil, citing concerns over democratic accountability and respect for human rights.