Pine Ridge, South Dakota - The Oglala Sioux Tribe is demanding the release of three enrolled members who were detained in Minneapolis by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

"The Oglala Sioux Tribe has formally notified senior federal officials that the detention of Oglala Sioux tribal members under federal immigration authority is unlawful and constitutes a direct violation of binding treaties, federal law, constitutional protections, and the United States' trust responsibility," the Indigenous nation said in a press release on Tuesday.

"The Tribe is demanding immediate federal action and government-to-government consultation."

The Oglala Sioux Tribe's President Frank Star Comes Out said four enrolled citizens were arrested at a Minneapolis homeless encampment on Friday. One has been released while three have been transferred to an ICE facility at Fort Snelling.

Fort Snelling served as a major US military center during the Dakota War of 1862, in which some Dakota – whose people were facing starvation – rose up in armed resistance to American colonialism. On December 26 of that year, at the order of US President Abraham Lincoln, 38 Dakota men were hanged in Mankato – the largest mass execution in American history. Another two men were captured and hanged at Fort Snelling in 1865.

Fort Snelling was also the site of a US concentration camp for Dakota people before their 1863 forced removal to a reservation at Crow Creek.

"The irony is not lost on us," said Star Comes Out. "Lakota citizens who are reported to be held at Fort Snelling – a site forever tied to the Dakota 38+2 – underscores why treaty obligations and federal accountability matter today, not just in history."

"This is not a misunderstanding or an enforcement discretion issue," he added. "This is a treaty violation. Treaties are not optional. Sovereignty is not conditional. Our citizens are not negotiable."

The Oglala Sioux Tribe has announced its Enrollment Office will be at the Minneapolis American Indian Center on January 16 and 17 from 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM to assist tribal members and families with enrollment verification and documentation.

Star Comes Out also sent an official memorandum to Trump administration officials – including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem – warning that ICE's arrest of tribal citizens "constitutes a grave violation of tribal treaties, statutory law, and the constitutional rights of a sovereign people."

"Members of the Oglala Sioux Tribe are United States citizens. We are the first Americans. We are not undocumented immigrants, and we are not subject to unlawful, immigration enforcement actions by ICE or Homeland Security," the notice reads.

The Oglala Sioux Tribe is demanding confirmation of the identities, locations, and legal status of all detained tribal members; the immediate release of all enrolled tribal citizens held by ICE; written assurances that unlawful detentions of tribal members will cease; and a meeting with the US government.

"Failure to honor our treaties and federal law will result in the Tribe pursuing all available legal remedies, including habeas corpus relief, injunctive actions, civil rights violation claims, and treaty enforcement litigation," Star Comes Out wrote.