UN calls for 'prompt investigations' of deaths in US immigration custody

Source: The Guardian

Fri 26 Jun 2026 14.12 EDT
Last modified on Fri 26 Jun 2026 14.29 EDT


The United Nations high commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, on Friday raised the alarm internationally about deaths in US government immigration custody and called for “prompt, independent, impartial and effective investigations”. Türk’s call came as the Trump administration faced investigations by watchdogs at its own Department of Homeland Security (DHS) into deaths and use of force against people detained in its expanding immigration detention system across the country.

Donald Trump is coming under increased pressure amid the surge in deaths within Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, which comes under the DHS, including a significant series of suicides – and a lack of transparency from the US president and his federal agencies. “Those responsible for violations of the law must be held to account, and the rights of the victims’ families to truth, justice and reparation, and guarantees of non-recurrence must be upheld,” Türk said, in a statement.

Türk’s call on Friday followed an announcement by the federal government’s Homeland Security watchdog office that it will be investigating deaths in ICE custody and use of force on detainees in immigration jails. Similarly, it follows a scathing report by Human Rights Watch released this week about deaths in ICE detention. The report alleged “violations of ICE policy and international human rights law”.

Türk also expressed alarm over the use of solitary confinement inside ICE detention centers. “All these factors exacerbate vulnerability and raise serious concerns as to whether some of these deaths in ICE custody could have been prevented,” Türk added. The UN has previously said that the use of solitary confinement for more than 15 days is considered “torture”, in a report that accused the US of using the punishment excessively in its prisons and jails, as well as overuse worldwide.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jun/26/un-deaths-immigration-custody-human-rights-law