Tom Homan, the US president's top border official, said yesterday that a significant withdrawal of immigration enforcement agents from Minnesota is underway, and that he has proposed, and Donald Trump has agreed, that the increased deployment there be ended.
As part of Operation Metro Surge, Trump deployed about 3.000 armed immigration agents to deport migrants in Minnesota by the end of January.
The operation led to violent scenes in Minneapolis, the state's largest city. Residents took to the streets to protest against masked agents in military-style gear. Immigration agents killed two American citizens in January who had come out to protest or observe the agents' actions.
"I have proposed, and President Trump has agreed, that this enhanced engagement operation be terminated," Homan told reporters at a press conference.
A week ago, Homan announced that about 700 of the 3.000 immigration agents would be withdrawn. Yesterday, he said that many of the remaining agents, who were deployed from other states, would be sent home over the next week. Before the reinforcements, Minnesota had about 150 immigration agents.
The actions of immigration authorities have been the target of fierce resistance from Minnesota Governor Tim Volz, a Democratic official, as well as other elected representatives in the state.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who joined Volz in suing the Trump administration last month and asked a judge to halt the massive operation, said in a statement that the increased deployment of federal agents was disastrous. “They thought they could break us, but the love of our neighbors and the determination to endure can outlast the occupation,” Frey said, welcoming Homan’s announcement that the operation was over.
The chief federal judge in Minnesota has sharply criticized Trump administration officials, saying Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has ignored dozens of court orders to release wrongly detained migrants.
Some of Trump's fellow Republicans have also criticized the way the deportation drive was carried out and how the administration handled the murders of two Americans, Renee Goode and Alex Pretty.
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