The national administration has dispatched additional immigration enforcement agents to Minnesota, representing an intensification in its campaign and rhetoric against the region and its sizable immigrant communities.
The Department of Homeland Security has confirmed on social media that it is “deploying additional forces to Minneapolis to root out fraud, arrest perpetrators and deport criminal illegal aliens”. The top official of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Todd Lyons, told a news outlet that the agency has in the city “the largest immigration operation ever underway right now”.
“Our agency has the largest immigration operation ever taking place right now.” – Todd Lyons, Immigration and Customs Enforcement Acting Director
Reports suggest the federal government is sending another two thousand agents, from both ICE and HSI, into the state for a one-month period. While Lyons did not verify that specific figure, he called it a combined operation from both agencies. DHS would not confirm a number but stated it had “surged law enforcement” resources.
Dubbed “Metro Surge,” the federal crackdown in the state has been underway since the start of last month. In reaction, community members have fought back against ICE, organizing protests and impeding deportations. Meanwhile, some immigrants have reportedly avoided public life, forgoing trips to grocery stores or medical care due to apprehension of being apprehended.
The homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, is believed to be on the ground in the state. She is seen in a DHS video of an arrest in Minneapolis of a man from Ecuador wanted for murder in his home country.
This fixation on Minnesota comes while the state is grappling with several prominent cases alleging fraud of social services. These cases have reportedly captured the focus of former President Trump and led to anti-immigrant comments from him specifically about Somalis. Notably, Minnesota is home to the biggest Somali population in the U.S., and the vast majority of Somalis in the state are U.S. citizens.
Lyons further stated that officers have been “conducting visits” to businesses suspected of hiring undocumented people and that some agents would be “looking at these fraud cases”. He praised Secretary Noem for leading an “highly effective operation” in Minneapolis and said the agents were fighting against sanctuary policies in places like Minnesota.
In a press conference, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called the federal surge “ridiculous” and part of a “conflict that’s being waged against Minnesota”.
“I don’t think any government in history has had to fight a war against the federal government every single day. We are under assault like no other time in our state’s history because of a spiteful, malicious administration that doesn’t care about the well being of Minnesotans.” – Governor Tim Walz
The governor's forceful condemnation underscores the significant division between Minnesota and Washington authorities over this intensifying enforcement initiative.
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