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Amid Secretive Expansion, Leaked Docs Reveal Locations of New ICE Facilities Nationwide
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Original article by Brad Reed republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Hundreds protest against shootings by immigration agents in Los Angeles, California on January 10, 2026. (Photo by Genaro Molina/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Many new facilities will be located near schools, hospitals, and places of worship such as churches and mosques.
Leaked documents obtained by Wired show that federal immigration enforcement operations in the US appear set to expand even more significantly in the coming years.
Overall, Wired reported on Tuesday, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS)—which includes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)—has been aggressively expanding its footprint across the country, with “more than 150 leases and office expansions” that “have or would place new facilities in nearly every state, many of them in or just outside of the country’s largest metropolitan areas.”
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Many of these new facilities are near sensitive locations that ICE has targeted in its immigrant abduction campaigns, including schools, hospitals, and places of worship such as churches and mosques.
For example, records show ICE is planning to occupy an office building just blocks away from a preschool in Houston, Texas, and to move into offices in Irvine, California located near a childcare facility.
To speed up this rapid expansion, DHS has been leaning on the Government Services Administration to write off standard lease procurement procedures and to even conceal lease listings in the name of “national security concerns.”
Taken as a whole, Wired found that “ICE agents and officers will share buildings with doctors, restaurants, and businesses,” and will “expand existing offices and move in with unrelated government agencies,” such as in Philadelphia, where they are set to share space with the local Division of Motor Vehicles.
“The leasing plans give a clear picture of 2” the report concluded.
The leaked plans about ICE’s aggressive expansion come as immigrants being held in ICE detention centers give disturbing accounts of conditions at facilities.
Seamus Culleton, an Irish citizen who has been held at a Texas ICE detention center for five months despite having a valid US work permit and no criminal record, told Ireland’s RTÉ that the facility is akin to a “modern-day concentration camp.”
“It’s a bunch of temporary tents,” he explained. “There’s a room for, probably, a thousand detainees in each tent… I’ve been locked in the same room now for four-and-a-half months. I’ve had barely any outside time, no fresh air, no sunshine. I can probably count on both hands the number of times I’ve been outside. So I’m just locked inside this room all day, every day.”
Culleton also said that the facilities were “filthy,” with toilets and showers being “completely nasty.”
Seamus Culleton, an Irishman with a valid US work permit, has been held in an ICE detention center for over four months and calls it “a modern day concentration camp” (Video: @RTERadio1) pic.twitter.com/p4nJJwuoXL
— Marco Foster (@MarcoFoster_) February 10, 2026
On Monday, ProPublica published letters that children detained at an immigration center in Dilley, Texas had written while they were being held with their parents.
Ender, a 12-year-old from Venezuela who has been detained in Dilley for over two months, complained about people getting inadequate medical care at the facility.
“Going to the doctor and… the only thing they tell you is to drink more water,” Ender wrote in his letter. “And the worst thing is that it seems the water is what makes people sick here.”
Ariana, a 14-year-old from Honduras who has been at the facility for a month-and-a-half, used her letter to explain the mental toll the detention has taken.
“Since I got to this Center all you will feel is sadness and mostly depression,” explained Ariana, who added that children being held at the facility are “being damage (sic) mentally, they witness how the’ve been treated.”
Original article by Brad Reed republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Orcas discuss Donald Trump and the killer apes’ concept of democracy. Front Orca warns that Trump is crashing his country’s economy and that everything he does he does for the fantastically wealthy.
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11 February 2026
Targeting ‘Bad Landlords,’ Mamdani Invites New Yorkers to Testify at ‘Rental Ripoff’ Hearings
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Original article by Julia Conley republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announces a series of new policy moves involving public health and taxes on February 3, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
“What tenants share at these hearings won’t lead to empty promises,” said the mayor. “Their testimony will guide our work and help shape the policies we advance to build a city New Yorkers can afford to call their home.”
After delivering on his promise of universal childcare for New York families, launching a process to ramp up construction of affordable housing, and personally seeing to snow removal after a major storm and the repair of a road hazard that’s long plagued cyclists, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday made strides toward fulfilling another campaign pledge: cracking down on “bad landlords.”
The effort will involve active participation from residents across the city, whom Mamdani invited to testify at “Rental Ripoff” hearings set to begin later this month in the five boroughs.
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“You can’t fight for tenants without listening to them first. That’s why we’re launching Rental Ripoff Hearings in all five boroughs—bringing together renters to speak directly about what they’re facing, from hidden fees to broken tiles and unresponsive landlords,” Mamdani, a democratic socialist, said in a statement.
On social media, Mamdani said the hearings will give New Yorkers “a chance to tell the city EXACTLY what your landlord’s been getting away with” and will help his government to enact “real policy changes.”
New York City: The time has arrived. Finally, a chance to tell the city EXACTLY what your landlord’s been getting away with. NYC’s first Rental Ripoff Hearings are happening in all five boroughs, and we want to hear from you. Real New Yorkers. Real stories. Real policy changes. pic.twitter.com/IS0CoY9Anx
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) February 10, 2026
People who testify will have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with officials from City Hall, “including commissioners from the city’s housing and consumer protection agencies, to help shape future policy,” according to the BK Reader.
The city website urges residents to testify about challenges including “getting issues in their homes addressed” and “rental junk fees,” like fees for certain amenities, pets, services, and rental payment systems.
The dates of the hearings were announced five weeks after Mamdani signed Executive Order 08, which stipulates that city agencies will publish a report 90 days after the final hearing—scheduled for April 7 in Staten Island—with recommendations for policy changes and action plans.
Kenny Burgos, CEO of the New York Apartment Association (NYAA), which represents apartment building owners and property managers, quickly denounced the planned hearings as “show trials” and “a distraction.”
Burgos claimed the NYAA believes that “renters with complaints should have their voices heard,” but suggested landlords have little ability to respond to complaints because “thousands of buildings are being defunded by the government through overtaxation, nonsensical rent laws, and failing city agencies.”
Mamdani has argued that “the problems tenants deal with every day need to become real problems for landlords, too” and has called for the doubling of fines for hazardous housing violations.
“What tenants share at these hearings won’t lead to empty promises,” said Mamdani on Tuesday. “Their testimony will guide our work and help shape the policies we advance to build a city New Yorkers can afford to call their home.”
Original article by Julia Conley republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
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11 February 2026
‘Everything Is for Sale’: Trump Exploits 250th Anniversary of US Independence for Yet Another Grift
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Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
The Washington Monument is illuminated with a projection of US President Donald Trump’s “Freedom 250” initiative during the New Year’s Eve show at the National Mall in Washington, DC on December 31, 2025. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
“Donald Trump and his henchmen have sabotaged what should be a unifying moment and appear intent on instead creating a highly divisive, corporate-funded, ideologically extremist exercise.”
Allies of the Trump administration, in partnership with the White House, are reportedly using the upcoming 250th anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence as another opportunity to solicit deep-pocketed donors, enticing them with promises of access to the president and other rewards.
The New York Times reported Sunday that donors who give at least $1 million to Freedom 250—a group announced by President Donald Trump in December—have been promised a path to “gain access to, and seek favor with, a president who has maintained a keen interest in fundraising, and a willingness to use the levers of government power to reward financial supporters,” including through his crypto scam and ballroom project.
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Trump has described Freedom 250 as a “public-private partnership” dedicated to organizing “a celebration of America like no other” later this year. Listed as official corporate sponsors of the initiative are prominent corporate names, including ExxonMobil, Mastercard, and Palantir.
The Times obtained a donor solicitation document circulated by Meredith O’Rourke, Trump’s top fundraiser. Donors who give at least $1 million to Freedom 250 “will receive prominent logo placement at Freedom 250 events,” which are expected to include UFC fights and an IndyCar race.
Freedom 250 appears to have been created to dodge oversight that applies to America250, a bipartisan congressional commission formed to plan official celebrations of the nation’s semiquincentennial.
“American history is being subordinated to Trump’s cult of personality,” Dan Friedman and Amanda Moore wrote in Mother Jones last week. “The president’s face is suddenly everywhere—next to George Washington on America250-themed National Parks passes; alongside Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt on giant banners hanging from federal buildings; on a $1 coin under consideration by the US Treasury.”
“Faced with sporadic pushback from a congressional commission overseeing America250 and from career officials at various agencies, Trump is now seeking to evade even these modest constraints,” they added, pointing to the launch of Freedom 250.
Park Service employees are being bombarded with guidance telling them to promote Freedom 250, the Trump-run org, in place of America250, the statutorily-bipartisan congressional commission. They were even urged to add the Freedom 250 logo to email signatures. www.documentcloud.org/documents/26…
— Dan Friedman (@dfriedman.bsky.social) 2026-02-08T19:35:23.167Z
Public Citizen demanded a congressional probe of Freedom 250’s activities, which the watchdog organization’s co-presidents described as a “potential diversion of taxpayer funds for highly partisan purposes.” According to the Times, roughly $10 million in taxpayer funds has “already been redirected to Freedom 250 from America250 for a fleet of six mobile museums called ‘Freedom Trucks’ that rolled out last month.”
“ Donald Trump and his henchmen have sabotaged what should be a unifying moment and appear intent on instead creating a highly divisive, corporate-funded, ideologically extremist exercise,” said Public Citizen’s Lisa Gilbert. “Once again, nothing is sacred in the Trump administration, not even the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Everything is for sale to corporate and potentially foreign interests.”
Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Donald Fuhrump says that Amerikkka doesn’t bother with crimes or charges anymore, not being 100% Amerikkkan and opposing his real estate intentions is enough.
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Orcas discuss Donald Trump and the killer apes’ concept of democracy. Front Orca warns that Trump is crashing his country’s economy and that everything he does he does for the fantastically wealthy.
10 February 2026
‘War by Another Means’: Union Movement Condemns Trump Economic Siege of Cuba
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Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
A woman is pictured in a street in Havana, Cuba on February 3, 2026. (Photo by Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images)
“Recent actions by the Trump administration have further exacerbated an already US-manufactured humanitarian crisis,” said Public Services International Inter-America.
The inter-American branch of a global labor federation representing tens of millions of workers issued a statement Monday condemning the Trump administration’s intensifying economic assault on Cuba and threats of regime change, calling such actions “war by other means” and violations of international law.
“They are incompatible with peace, the human right to dignity, and the principle of national sovereignty,” said Public Services International (PSI) Inter-America as the Trump administration’s blockade of oil imports fueled a worsening humanitarian crisis for the island nation, bringing rolling blackouts, straining hospitals, and causing shortages of food and other necessities.
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The labor federation said Monday that the Trump administration’s policies are an extension of the catastrophic, decades-long economic US blockade on Cuba, “which constitutes a violation of the United Nations Charter and has been condemned year after year by the overwhelming majority of the international community.”
“Recent actions by the Trump administration have further exacerbated an already US-manufactured humanitarian crisis,” PSI Inter-America said, pointing to the White House’s blockade of Venezuelan oil shipments to Cuba and threats of economic retaliation against any country that provides the island nation with fuel.
“These measures deliberately deepen suffering and place lives in danger,” the union federation said. “The blockade itself causes avoidable hardship, illness, and death among the Cuban people every year. Its intensification follows months of sanctions, seizures, and interference targeting Venezuelan oil shipments, further depriving Cuba of essential energy supplies.”
The federation called on all of its affiliates worldwide and trade unions in the Americas to:
- Stand in active solidarity with the people of Cuba and publicly oppose the US blockade by raising their voices in protest, in every possible arena, to condemn this arbitrary and immoral measure;
- Demand that their governments take immediate and concrete action to defend international law, continue trade relations with Cuba, and ensure the delivery of all contractual and humanitarian goods;
- Advocate in all multilateral bodies for continued support for Cuba in the face of this ongoing economic aggression.
- Mobilize members to contact elected representatives through coordinated phone calls, emails, and letters demanding an end to the blockade;
- Press national labor centers to carry these demands forward on behalf of the entire labor movement;
- Organize and collect humanitarian and solidarity aid for Cuba; and
- Where possible, organize delegations to Cuba, including participation in the May 1 demonstrations in Havana and the Solidarity Conference on May 2, and consider earlier solidarity visits.
During a news conference on Monday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum condemned the Trump administration’s escalating economic warfare against Cuba as “deeply unjust” and vowed to “continue supporting Cuba”—even as her government halted oil shipments to its ally amid the US president’s threats.
“You cannot strangle a people in this way,” said Sheinbaum, who this past weekend authorized a shipment of more than 800 tons of humanitarian aid to Cuba, including food and other necessities.
“No one can ignore the situation that the Cuban people are currently experiencing because of the sanctions that the United States is imposing in a very unfair manner,” the Mexican president added.
Original article by Jake Johnson republished from Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).
Donald Fuhrump says that Amerikkka doesn’t bother with crimes or charges anymore, not being 100% Amerikkkan and opposing his real estate intentions is enough.
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Orcas discuss Donald Trump and the killer apes’ concept of democracy. Front Orca warns that Trump is crashing his country’s economy and that everything he does he does for the fantastically wealthy.
10 February 2026
Mexico sends shipment of humanitarian aid to Cuba
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Original article by Pablo Meriguet republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.
Shipment of humanitarian aid leavez Mexico for Cuba. Photo: MFA Mexico
Hundreds of tons of food were sent from the port of Veracruz to the island as the island faces one of its most critical challenges. Mexico also promised to send hundreds of tons of food in the coming weeks.
The government of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the shipment of 814 tons of milk, meat, beans, rice, and other foodstuffs to Cuba on Sunday, February 8. The move came days after Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel presented a series of emergency measures being adopted by his government to mitigate the impact of the severe fuel shortage facing the island.
Cuba is currently facing a serious crisis, provoked by recent maneuvers from the US government which, emboldened by its massive military build up in the Caribbean and its recent bombing of Caracas, has sought to further tighten the blockade on the island, hoping to finally force the overthrow of the government. On January 29, Trump announced an executive order under which any country that trades hydrocarbons with Havana will see a 10% increase in tariffs on its products exported to the United States. The executive order was said to have targeted Cuba’s main energy suppliers: Venezuela, Mexico, and Russia.
Venezuela was already effectively forced to halt oil shipments to Cuba due to the naval blockade imposed by the US against Venezuela, which already resulted in the illegal seizure of a Cuba-bound Venezuelan oil tanker.
Russia, a country which, due to heavy sanctions, is the most decoupled from the US economy, has declared that it will continue supplying fuel to Cuba. The government has said that “the situation in Cuba is truly critical” and top government spokesperson Dimitry Peskov, said “We are in close contact with our Cuban friends through diplomatic and other channels.”
Mexico, for its part, announced that it was engaged in negotiations with the US over oil shipments. President Claudia Sheinbaum has openly declared her rejection of the Trump measure: “You can’t suffocate people like that. It is very unfair.”
She also promised that Mexico would continue to help Cuba in any way possible: “We will continue to support Cuba and take all necessary diplomatic action to resume oil shipments.” In recent days, after learning of the Trump administration’s “threat”. Mexico, one of the few countries that sent oil to Cuba, said it would consult with Washington to determine the extent of possible retaliation.
According to Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel, not a single drop of oil has entered the island in 2026, posing a serious threat to a country that depends heavily on fuel for its power grid and to keep transportation, health, education, and other key systems functioning. Government officials and political analysts have claimed that the recent measure seeks to annihilate the Cuban people.
Former Colombian President Ernesto Samper shared this opinion in a post: “SOS for Cuba. The genocide of the Cuban people is being prepared by suffocating their vital conditions for survival. A United Nations humanitarian mission could lead a deployment of humanitarian ships loaded with the fuel that the island needs today, like the oxygen we breathe every day to stay alive.”
Mexican solidarity with Cuba
For his part, the Cuban president said, regarding the Mexican shipment that departed in two ships from the port of Veracruz: “Thank you, Mexico. For your solidarity, affection, and always warm embrace of Cuba.”
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez wrote on X: “We thank the Government of Mexico, under the leadership of President Claudia Sheinbaum, for sending more than 800 tons of aid to Cuba, amid the intensification of the blockade following the recent Executive Order by the US government. While some try to suffocate our population, sister nations extend their hand in solidarity.”
Original article by Pablo Meriguet republished from peoples dispatch under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (CC BY-SA) license.
Orcas discuss Donald Trump and the killer apes’ concept of democracy. Front Orca warns that Trump is crashing his country’s economy and that everything he does he does for the fantastically wealthy.
Elon Musk urges you to be a Fascist like him, says that you can ignore facts and reality then.
Donald Fuhrump says that Amerikkka doesn’t bother with crimes or charges anymore, not being 100% Amerikkkan and opposing his real estate intentions is enough.
10 February 2026

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