Homeland Security agents raided Ilhan Omar’s home in Trump campaign

Homeland Security agents targeted the Washington, D.C., home of U.S. Representative Ilhan Omar in a raid launched three weeks before the midterms, as part of a campaign by the Trump administration against the Somali American community.

Federal authorities under Trump are actively pursuing a multi-front campaign against Somalis, framing them as terrorists, murderers, and criminals while leveraging government agencies for domestic and international crackdowns. This effort includes military attacks in Somalia alongside arrests, deportations, and the weaponization of federal law enforcement against immigrants and the Somali American community in the United States, including the recent deployment of Homeland Security agents targeting Omar.

In his second term, President Donald Trump has routinely cast Somalia as lawless and Somalis as violent. Meanwhile, his administration has killed hundreds of people in Somalia, claiming they belong to terror groups, largely without public knowledge. Sebastian Gorka, Trump’s counterterrorism czar, stated that Trump personally ordered the death of a Somali man within days of regaining the White House, claiming without evidence that the individual was connected with the Islamic State terror group. Trump has sought to do the same with Omar.

The Raid on Ilhan Omar and the Push for Denaturalization

Homeland Security agents raided Omar’s Washington home last Monday, three weeks before the midterms, in which she is seeking reelection. According to reports, the probe was initiated by the Trump administration to establish grounds for revoking Omar’s American citizenship and proceeding with her expulsion. At 8 years old, Omar escaped the conflict in Somalia alongside her relatives, subsequently arriving in the United States as a refugee before obtaining citizenship in the year 2000.

The administration has issued more than a dozen subpoenas, including to some of Omar’s relatives. Conservative media outlets reported that federal prosecutors obtained Omar’s DNA as part of their ongoing investigation. Representative Omar called the raid an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement.

Trump claimed not to have ordered the raid, telling reporters he has nothing to do with it while adding that he considers Omar a terrible person. The administration has relied on a rarely used denaturalization statute, most famously employed to strip citizenship from Nazi war criminals.

Military Escalation and Airstrikes in Somalia

Based on figures compiled by the D.C. think tank New America, Trump has directed more than 400 operations that have resulted in as many as 1,500 Somali fatalities over the past decade. During his second term alone, the Trump administration has conducted more than 200 airstrikes in Somalia, including close to 90 this year. The U.S. military has been at war in Somalia for nearly a quarter-century, targeting al-Shabab and the Islamic State group, while the CIA and special operators created local proxy forces.

U.S. attacks in Somalia have skyrocketed under Trump. From 2007 to 2017, under the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama, the U.S. military carried out 59 declared airstrikes in Somalia. The Biden administration conducted 51 declared strikes over four years. Throughout his tenure spanning six years in office, Trump’s administration has directed upwards of 400 military strikes directed at suspected insurgents.

The U.S. rarely offers evidence that those killed are members of terrorist groups. A New America analysis found militant leaders comprised just 1.7 percent of those killed. Africa Command refused to provide requested evidence that any of those killed in airstrikes this year were militants. An AFRICOM spokesperson stated by email that all U.S. strikes are conducted in close coordination with partners against designated terror groups.

Historian Elizabeth Schmidt noted that Trump has conducted more drone strikes in Somalia than Bush, Obama, and Biden combined, resulting in numerous civilian deaths of young men living in areas where it was easy to label them jihadis. American authorities maintain that civilian casualties in the nearly two-decade Somali conflict total only six individuals, whereas figures compiled by Airwars, an organization tracking airstrikes, calculate the actual toll to be up to 2,600 percent greater.

Targeting the Somali American Community in Minnesota

Data from the Census Bureau’s annual American Community Survey indicates that approximately 84,000 out of the 260,000 individuals of Somali ancestry residing in the United States make their home within the Minneapolis–St. Paul region. Out of this population, approximately 58 percent were born domestically within the United States, while naturalized citizens account for 87 percent of those born abroad. The administration targeted this community during a violent immigration crackdown known as “Operation Metro Surge” during late 2025 and early 2026. During Metro Surge, federal agents shot and killed protesters Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti.

Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, noted that Trump’s rhetoric has endangered the Somali community by repeatedly demonizing them.

More on this story: Rep. Ilhan Omar Lawyers Accuse Justice Department of Violating Protocols During Home Search

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