Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Tuesday reported that large-scale immigration raids in Los Angeles, carried out by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other federal agencies, violated Latino residents’ civil rights and utilized racial profiling.

According to the organization, since May ICE, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and other federal law enforcement agencies have staged hundreds of raids across Los Angeles at workplaces and public areas occupied by Latinos. Agents allegedly targeted food vendors, car washes, and Home Depot parking lots.

ICE arrest data reportedly showed a sharp increase in arrests from May through July, with only five percent of arrestees previously convicted for violence or sex offenses. Officials allegedly pressured individuals to accept “voluntar

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