Afghan Veteran Dies in ICE Custody Amid Questions and Silence

Nazeer Paktyawal’s death in ICE custody is the latest in a disturbing pattern of neglect and opacity surrounding immigrant detention centers. The 41-year-old Afghan, who fought alongside U.S. Special Forces and was evacuated during the chaotic 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, died roughly a day after being taken into ICE custody in mid-March. His family says he was healthy and working before his arrest, and they are now desperate for answers.

Paktyawal’s brother, Naseer Paktiawal, who served as a translator for U.S. troops and is now a U.S. citizen, recounted the harrowing final hours. After ICE detained Nazeer, he called his brother complaining of fever, body aches, and difficulty breathing. Naseer called an ambulance, watching it arrive at the Dallas ICE facility, but says the medics never checked on Nazeer. The next morning, Nazeer was dead.

“If they had let those guys check up on him, he would still be alive,” Naseer said. “He would still be here with his family and with me.”

ICE has remained largely silent beyond a brief statement confirming Nazeer was pronounced dead at Parkland Hospital and asserting that detainees receive emergency care. The city of Dallas also declined to comment on the ambulance response.

Nazeer’s story challenges the Trump-era policies that stripped him of his commercial driving license due to immigration status, forcing him into lower-paying jobs despite his service to the U.S. government. ICE claims he had prior arrests involving food benefits fraud and theft, charges his family vehemently denies, calling him a hero rather than a criminal.

This death is not an isolated case. Nazeer was the 12th person to die in ICE custody in 2026 at the time of his passing; since then, five more have died, bringing the total to 17. Each death raises urgent questions about the conditions inside ICE detention centers, the quality of medical care, and the agency’s accountability.

Nazeer’s family mourns not only a beloved brother and father figure but also the broken promises of safety and justice they believed America represented. “If he’s not safe, I’m not safe,” his brother said. “He thought that this country is the safest country in the world, but it’s not.”

This tragedy underscores the urgent need for transparency, oversight, and reform in immigration detention. The lives lost are a stark reminder that behind the statistics are human beings who deserve dignity and care — not silence and neglect.