USA · updated 2h ago · 2 min read
UN Rights Chief Volker Türk Demands Accountability After 23 Die in U.S. ICE Custody
23 migrants died in US immigration custody in 2026, prompting UN accountability call. Volker Türk urged independent investigations and halting deportations to places of irreparable harm.
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UN demands accountability
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk demanded accountability after deaths in U.S. immigration custody rose, telling the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva that four additional fatalities recorded since June brought the total number of deaths in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody to 23 for 2026 alone.
“High Commissioner Volker Türk demanded full accountability”
Türk urged Washington to halt removals to high-risk nations and specifically highlighted volatile contexts such as Haiti, while the UN also pressed for independent investigations into the deaths.
The UN framing tied the surge to an aggressive expansion of enforcement operations and detention capacities under the Trump administration, which Türk said drove mortality rates in custody to their highest levels in over a decade.
Human rights bodies also raised alarm over planned enforcement upgrades, including ICE procurement proposals for electric shock gear, warning that heightened tactical measures risk amplifying violence during arrests.
Calls to stop deportations
Türk told the Council that “cuatro personas más han muerto bajo custodia migratoria” since June, bringing the total to 23, and he demanded “investigaciones rápidas, independientes, imparciales y eficaces” for the deaths.
He urged the United States to stop deportations to places where migrants could face “daños irreparables,” with special attention to transfers to Haití, and he also asked that due process be guaranteed in expulsions to third countries.
The UN also questioned medical and detention conditions and the “falta de información completa” about the circumstances of some deaths, while calling for strengthened supervision inside immigration facilities.
In parallel, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security defended that detainees receive medical services and said the death rate is a reduced proportion compared with the total number of migrants under custody.
ICE tactics and oversight
The UN High Commissioner said he was concerned about reports of plans to equip ICE agents with gloves capable of delivering electric shocks, warning that this could increase violence associated with immigration operations.
“entre 10 y 20 millones de dólares”
Euronews reported that the plan attributed to ICE would have the Department of Homeland Security spend between 10 and 20 million dollars on devices described as “distracción y desescalada,” while Türk urged the U.S. to ensure due process in removals to third countries.
The UN also pointed to investigations by the office of the inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security into deaths and possible use of force in immigration facilities, with reviews focused on whether medical care, emergency response, and surveillance protocols were followed.
A joint report by Human Rights Watch and Physicians for Human Rights was cited as saying the death rate in ICE custody reached its highest level in more than a decade, alongside criticisms of use-of-force tactics and concerns about training standards for new recruits.