Thursday, July 16, 2026

U.S. scraps ban on immigration raids in churches, hospitals, schools

Officers can now make arrests at designated “sensitive” areas, including houses of worship, schools, and hospitals.

• January 22, 2025
Undocumented immigrants at U.S. border
Undocumented immigrants at U.S. border [Photo credit: CNN]

U.S. immigration and border officials will be able to arrest migrants at so-called “sensitive” locations again after the Trump administration overturned policies limiting where such arrests could happen.

Officers can now make arrests at designated “sensitive” areas, including houses of worship, schools, and hospitals.

Officials have been prohibited from doing this since 2011.

Later, then-President Joe Biden’s administration expanded the regulation, further restricting the authority’s powers.

“Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. “The Trump administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense.”

A second directive reinstates the ability for the U.S. to quickly deport any undocumented person arrested who is unable to prove they have been in the country for more than two years.

(dpa/NAN)

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