GENEVA (AP) — The United Nations’ top human rights official called Wednesday for a “massive rethink” of immigration policies especially in the United States around the World Cup.Issues around “racial profiling, surveillance and immigration enforcement” were cited by U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk even before the 48-nation, 39-day tournament starts Thursday.Iran’s team was moved from a training camp in Arizona to Mexico, some Iranian officials were denied U.S. entry visas, Africa’s top referee from Somalia was refused entry in Miami and images circulated of a Senegal player being frisked by a security guard on airport tarmac.“We have seen some of the scenes,” Türk told reporters at a briefing at the U.N.’s human rights agency headquarters.“I hope that the issues around racial profiling, around surveillance, around immigration enforcement are not going to affect this World Cup in the way that they have already done,” the Austrian lawyer said.
The U.S. is hosting most of the 104 games in a shared project with Canada and Mexico, though it is only the policies of federal agencies under U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration that have drawn criticism.
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