US immigration agents arrested more than 49,500 people in July

By Al Jazeera Staff and AP. Published On 26 Aug 202626 Aug 2026.

Key points

• Almost 20, 000 of the July arrests happened in Texas and Florida.
• The expanding arrest campaign comes after a hiring drive, with ICE bringing on roughly 12, 000 extra officers and agents last year.
• In the aftermath of two fatal shootings in Minnesota in January that led to protests and an uproar from Democratic lawmakers, arrests began to fall in February.
• In his first year back in office, the monthly numbers began climbing as office-holders eased limits on where and whom agents could target.

United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested 49, 571 individuals in July, the highest in a month since President Donald Trump took office for his second term, according to the latest figures available.

Notably, the figures for July indicated a rise of roughly 15 percent over June's count and concerning 70 percent above February's total, according to administration data provided by ICE to the Deportation Data Project based at the University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, Los Angeles and analysed by The Associated Press news agency.

In practice, the month before Trump's return to the White House in January 2025, monthly arrests were slightly more than 8, 000, a figure largely created up of immigrants transferred from city or state jails and prisons and turned over to ICE to remove from the country.

In his first year back in office, the monthly numbers began climbing as office-holders eased limits on where and whom agents could target. By December, monthly arrests had surpassed 40, 000.

In the aftermath of two fatal shootings in Minnesota in January that led to protests and an uproar from Democratic lawmakers, arrests began to fall in February. After remaining stagnant for months, the numbers surged in June and then again in July.

Almost 20, 000 of the July arrests happened in Texas and Florida. Both states have taken part in cooperation deals with ICE known as 287(g) agreements that enable local law enforcement to essentially operate as extra arms for immigration enforcement.

Meanwhile, the expanding arrest campaign comes after a hiring drive, with ICE bringing on roughly 12, 000 extra officers and agents last year.

In short, US immigration agents arrested more than 49, 500 people in July is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.