Clashes Persist Outside Newark ICE Facility as Protests Enter Fifth Day

NEWARK, New Jersey — Tensions escalated Tuesday outside the Delaney Hall detention center as protesters and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents confronted one another for the fifth consecutive day, resulting in at least one arrest and the use of chemical spray to disperse demonstrators.

The confrontation unfolded as demonstrators gathered to protest conditions at the Newark facility, where a hunger strike by detainees is reportedly ongoing. Video from the scene showed agents forming a line to monitor protesters before moving to detain an individual. During the arrest, personnel deployed spray to separate demonstrators from agents securing the person in custody.

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security addressed the demonstrations in a statement posted on social media platform X: “We will not let rioters stop or slow ICE down.” The statement further asserted that “New Jersey sanctuary politicians and anti-ICE agitators chose to spend their Memorial Day weekend smearing law enforcement and rioting outside ICE’s Delaney Hall facility,” while emphasizing that “our law enforcement continued to put their lives on the line to arrest murderers, pedophiles, and kidnappers.”

The protests at Delaney Hall, a county facility used for immigration detention, have drawn ongoing attention from advocacy groups calling for transparency regarding detainee treatment and conditions. Tuesday’s events marked the continuation of demonstrations that began earlier in the week, with both sides maintaining a presence outside the facility.

Local authorities have not released additional details regarding the arrest or whether any injuries occurred during the confrontation. The situation remains under monitoring as community members and federal personnel continue to gather near the detention center.