ICE arrests over 10,000 in five-day June surge

U.S. immigration authorities arrested more than 10,000 people in a five-day surge of enforcement at the end of June, roughly doubling the daily arrest rate and significantly increasing the number of individuals in federal detention. The operation, directed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), was prompted by a White House request for higher arrest numbers and established a new daily standard of 2,000 arrests.

According to internal documents and federal officials, the intensified enforcement began on Friday, June 26, and continued through Tuesday, June 30. Arrests peaked on Saturday, June 27, with more than 2,400 people detained. Prior to this push, ICE had been averaging approximately 1,000 arrests per day earlier in the year. The agency's detention population grew by nearly 4,000 during this period, exceeding 63,000 individuals in custody as of Tuesday.

Internal directives instructed officers to prioritize arrests of individuals already targeted for deportation, including those with final removal orders from immigration judges. Operations were conducted at immigration check-ins, traffic stops, and public locations. One specific operation during this period was a...