Federal homeland security officials and New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill announced the restoration of family visitation at Delaney Hall immigration detention center on Sunday morning.
The decision followed a week of intense demonstrations met by aggressive policing tactics at the Newark facility.
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The suspension of family visits initially occurred after detained immigrants launched an ongoing hunger and labor strike inside the facility.
Facility staff confirmed that units 1 and 3, which include the women's section, resumed visitation on Sunday between noon and 2 p.
m. local time, while access for the hunger-striking detainees in unit 2 remained unclear.
In response to consecutive nights of clashes, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka activated an overnight curfew from 9 p.
m. to 6 a.
m. for the area surrounding the facility.
The restrictions will remain in place until further notice, with local authorities threatening arrest or legal action for non-compliance.
The unrest escalated significantly over the weekend after state police replaced federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers outside the perimeter.
Top state officials reported that three individuals were arrested on Saturday night following a clash where demonstrators allegedly attacked police and a security barrier.
Opposition to the facility conditions has drawn national political attention, with between 300 and 400 detainees participating in the strike since May 22.
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Protesters are demanding improved medical care, a meeting with the governor, and the progression of their immigration cases.
During an oversight visit to the facility on Sunday, the top US House Democrat from neighboring New York evaluated the current environment inside the center.
"Shock the conscience," said Hakeem Jeffries.
Advocates at the scene heavily criticized the state administration for deploying state police officers, who utilized horses, riot gear, and teargas canisters against the crowd.
"The escalation that happened [on Friday] was ten times worse than what ICE was doing to everyone prior nights," said Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the New York Immigrant Coalition.
Awawdeh noted that the state police served as the primary escalators during the weekend demonstrations. "If anything, the escalators were the state police," he said.
While the governor's office claimed federal authorities met state demands to restore visitation, federal officials disputed that characterization, attributing the initial suspension entirely to safety concerns.
"To be clear: Visitation was only suspended because of violent riots," said a DHS spokesperson.
The federal agency maintained that the resumption of visits was made possible only after establishing a secure perimeter around the facility.
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"Now that we have a secure perimeter, visitation can resume," said the spokesperson.
