The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, says he is “astounded” by what he called the “now-routine abuse and denigration” of migrants and refugees by US authorities. Speaking in Geneva on Friday, January 23, Türk urged Washington to ensure migration policies and enforcement practices respect human dignity and due process.

He also criticised what he described as a “dehumanising portrayal and harmful treatment” of migrants and refugees. “Where is the concern for their dignity, and our common humanity?” he asked.

Raids in Minneapolis Spark Outrage

Türk’s remarks come as the Republican administration of President Donald Trump pushes a nationwide deportation drive targeting what it says are millions of undocumented people in the United States.

Türk highlighted large-scale enforcement operations, including the deployment of thousands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to Democratic-led Minneapolis. On Thursday, Democrats and local officials in the city expressed outrage after a five-year-old boy was detained in the ongoing crackdown, according to Türk’s statement.

Force and Arrests Under Scrutiny

Türk said immigration and other agents were repeatedly using apparently unnecessary or disproportionate force during these operations. He stressed that under international law, intentional lethal force is only allowed as a last resort against a person who poses an imminent threat to life.

Minneapolis has also seen tense protests since federal agents shot and killed US citizen Renee Good on January 7. Trump and his officials have defended the agent’s actions as legitimate self-defense.

Family Separations and Deaths in Custody

Türk warned that several US migration policies are resulting in arbitrary and unlawful arrests and detentions, along with flawed removal decisions. He said people are being surveilled and detained at hospitals, churches, mosques, courthouses, markets, schools and even in their homes, sometimes violently and often on mere suspicion of being undocumented.

He said many arrests, detentions and expulsions happen without efforts to assess and maintain family unity, exposing children to risks of severe and long-term harm. Türk called on the administration to end practices “tearing apart families”.

He urged leaders at all levels to halt “scapegoating tactics” that increase migrants’ exposure to xenophobic hostility and abuse. Türk also called for an independent and transparent investigation into deaths in ICE custody, noting at least 30 reported last year and six reported so far this year.