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The US immigration agency whose officers have been involved in two fatal shootings in Minneapolis has said it is sending agents to help support American security operations during the Winter Olympics, which start in Italy on February 6.
Confirmation of the agency's role came from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE, after reports prompted alarm and anger in Italy.
"This is a militia that kills... of course they're not welcome in Milan," the city's mayor, Beppe Sala, told Italian radio on Tuesday.
An ICE spokesperson stressed that "all security operations remain under Italian authority".
US embassy sources in Rome had already explained to Italian media that various federal agencies had worked at previous Games in the past, although it was not clear if the customs and enforcement agency had itself taken part.
The agency's statement on Tuesday explained that "ICE's Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is supporting the US Department of State's Diplomatic Security Service and host nation to vet and mitigate risks from transnational criminal organisations".
It would "obviously" not conduct immigration enforcement operations outside the US, it said.
