Trump ends immigration crackdown in Minnesota

AFP | Washington

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President Donald Trump’s pointman yesterday announced the end of an aggressive immigration operation in Minnesota that triggered large protests and nationwide outrage following the killing of two US citizens.

Thousands of federal agents including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers conducted weeks of sweeping raids and arrests in what the administration claims were targeted missions against criminals.

“I have proposed and President Trump has concurred that this surge operation conclude,” Trump official Tom Homan told a briefing outside Minneapolis. “A significant drawdown has already been underway this week and will continue through the next week.”

The operation sparked tense demonstrations in the Minneapolis area, and the fatal separate shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti last month led to a wave of criticism.

Homan raised the prospect that the officers would move to another location but gave no details, as speculation is rife about which city might be targeted next.

“In the next week, we’re going to deploy the officers here on detail, back to their home stations or other areas of the country where they are needed. But we’re going to continue to enforce immigration law,” he said.

Campaigning against illegal immigration helped Trump get elected in 2024, but daily videos from Minnesota of violent masked agents, and multiple reports of people being targeted on flimsy evidence, helped send Trump’s approval ratings plummeting.

The case of Liam Conejo Ramos, five, who was detained on January 20, also stoked anger.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said the ICE operation “had been catastrophic for our neighbors and businesses, and now it’s time for a great comeback.

“We will show the same commitment to our imm