Kordia was arrested in 2024 during the Gaza solidarity protests at Columbia University. The charges against her were dropped the next day, but she was detained in March 2025 by ICE during a routine immigration check-in.
It is not normal for a healthy 41-year-old man to die less than 24 hours after being taken into government custody, said Shawn VanDiver, president of AfghanEvac, a San Diego-based group that helps Afghans who sought refuge in the United States after cooperating with U.S. authorities during the war in Afghanistan.
Juan Nicolás has been detained at Dilley since January, where his mother said he's been consistently sick. According to reports compiled by Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), Univision's Lidia Terrezas, and Juan's mother, at about 3 a.m. on Sunday, Juan suffered a "medical episode" where he was "choking on his own vomit." He was rushed to a hospital on Monday night and diagnosed with bronchitis.
The memo was filed as a part of documents submitted in a federal court case tied to refugees who were arrested in Minnesota. In it, USCIS Director Joseph Edlow and ICE acting Director Todd Lyons direct their agencies to "detain and inspect" refugees who do not "voluntarily return to DHS custody for inspection and examination" to be a legal permanent resident at the one-year mark of being in the country.
Dulcie and her family, who live in the Twin Cities metro, are afraid every day when they leave for work and school. "All of my friends are staying at home. No one comes out. It gets to me," said Dulcie, who declined to use her last name because she fears retribution from federal agents, who have been detaining citizens and legal immigrants.