ICE Withdraws Over 1,000 Agents From Minnesota Following Criticism & Deaths
WASHINGTON — More than 1,000 immigration agents have left the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota, and hundreds more will depart in the coming days, according to White House official Tom Homan. The drawdown is part of a scaling back of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement operation, Homan said Sunday.
Speaking on CBS’s Face the Nation, Homan stated a “small” security force will remain for a limited time to protect remaining immigration agents and respond to potential escalations. He did not specify the size of this remaining force. He added that agents will continue to investigate claims of fraud and respond to protests against immigration enforcement, including one that disrupted a church service.
“We’ve already pulled out well over 1,000 people, and starting Monday, Tuesday, we’ll pull out several hundred more. We’re going back to the original footprint,” Homan said.
The operation, dubbed “Operation Metro Surge” by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency, involved deploying thousands of agents to the area. The Department of Homeland Security characterized it as its largest-ever immigration enforcement surge, and initially deemed it successful. Yet, the operation faced increasing criticism as the situation became more volatile, culminating in the deaths of two U.S. Citizens.
Protests became commonplace, with a network of residents working to assist immigrants by warning them of approaching agents and documenting ICE activity. The shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal agents drew condemnation and raised questions about agent conduct, leading to adjustments in the operation’s approach, according to reports.
Homan announced last week that 700 federal agents would immediately depart Minnesota, while more than 2,000 remained in the state. On Thursday, he indicated a “significant drawdown” was already underway and would continue throughout the week.
Despite the reduction in personnel, Homan affirmed that immigration enforcement operations would continue in the Twin Cities, and mass deportations would proceed nationwide. Agents leaving Minnesota will return to their original duty stations or be reassigned to other locations.
When asked about the possibility of future deployments matching the scale of the operation in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Homan responded, “It depends on the situation.”