UN rights chief calls for probe into migrant deaths in US detention centres
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, is calling for an independent investigation into the rising number of migrant deaths in US detention centres during Donald Trump's second term.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, has called for an independent investigation into the sharp increase in deaths at migrant detention centres in the United States under President Donald Trump's second term. In a statement on Friday, Turk expressed concern over the lack of transparency regarding these deaths, at least 19 of which have occurred so far this year, according to US government statistics.
Deaths in immigrant detention centres have surged during Trump's second term, a result of what rights groups and immigration lawyers describe as systematic neglect, inhumane conditions, and abuses. The Trump administration has sought to rapidly expand the network of detention centres, some operated by private contractors, as part of its mass deportation efforts.
A recent death of a Georgian man, Mamuka Artmeladze, in a Louisiana detention facility on June 4 brought the total fatalities this year to 19. This compares to 33 last year and 11 in 2024. The watchdog group Human Rights Watch reported earlier this month that the mortality rate in ICE custody is at its highest level in over a decade and has more than doubled since Trump's second term began. It is nearly four times higher than under the Biden administration and more than two and a half times higher than during Trump's first term.
According to the report, 52 people have died in detention during Trump's second term, ranging in age from 19 to 75 and representing 20 nationalities. Turk noted concerning allegations regarding the use of force at such facilities and that five of the deaths recorded in 2026 were classified as suicides. He also expressed concern over the reported use of solitary confinement, which is associated with a heightened risk of suicide and is considered a form of torture by the UN after 15 days. All these factors, Turk said, exacerbate vulnerability and raise serious concerns about whether some of these deaths could have been prevented.
