Milan Sees Protests Over US ICE Role in Winter Olympics Amidst Rising Global Tensions
Milan, Italy – Hundreds of protesters gathered in Milan over the weekend to denounce the planned deployment of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during the upcoming Winter Olympics, which begin on Friday, February 6, 2026. The protests occurred in Piazza XXV Aprile, a square commemorating Italy's liberation from Nazi occupation in 1945, according to Sky News.
The Italian Interior Ministry stated that ICE agents would only operate within U.S. diplomatic offices and would not be patrolling the streets. Despite these assurances, demonstrators voiced their opposition, echoing anti-ICE protests seen in the United States, blowing whistles, and singing Bruce Springsteen songs, Sky News reported.
The protests in Milan occurred against a backdrop of heightened international tensions. In response to the European Union's decision to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization, Iran declared European armies as terrorist groups. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf stated that the decision was made under Article 7 of the Law on Countermeasures Against the Declaration of the IRGC as a Terrorist Organisation, according to Al Jazeera.
Adding to the escalating tensions, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned that any military action by the United States would ignite a regional war, Sky News reported. This warning came after U.S. President Donald Trump declined to comment on the possibility of military action against Iran and stated that "very big" American warships were heading to the region. Khamenei warned Trump that the entire region would be engulfed in conflict if the U.S. starts a war.
Meanwhile, calls for boycotts against Israel have intensified following what Al Jazeera described as Israel's "genocidal war on Gaza." Advocates are urging boycotts of Israeli goods and calling for companies to divest from Israel or its settlements in the occupied West Bank.
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