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ICE surge ends in Maine, but Somali immigrants are still reeling in Lewiston

Protesters rally against the presence of U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement in Maine, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Portland, Maine. (Robert F. Bukaty/AP)
Robert F. Bukaty/AP
Protesters rally against the presence of U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement in Maine, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026, in Portland, Maine. (Robert F. Bukaty/AP)

Maine Sen. Susan Collins says the surge of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in her state is going to stop after the agency began an immigration crackdown there last week.

But Somali immigrants in Lewiston, Maine’s second-largest city, are still reeling from the ICE operation.

WBUR’s Anthony Brooks reports.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2026 WBUR

Anthony Brooks has more than twenty five years of experience in public radio, working as a producer, editor, reporter, and most recently, as a fill-in host for NPR. For years, Brooks has worked as a Boston-based reporter for NPR, covering regional issues across New England, including politics, criminal justice, and urban affairs. He has also covered higher education for NPR, and during the 2000 presidential election he was one of NPR's lead political reporters, covering the campaign from the early primaries through the Supreme Court's Bush V. Gore ruling. His reports have been heard for many years on NPR's Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition.
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