MINNEAPOLIS (AP) 鈥� The Trump administration is ending a massive that swept across the Minneapolis-St. Paul area and other Minnesota communities, Tom Homan said Thursday, concluding an operation that led to thousands of arrests, angry mass protests and the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens.
The crackdown, which the Department of Homeland Security called its 鈥� ,鈥� became the in the debate over President Donald Trump鈥檚 .
The surge of thousands of federal officers changed life across the . Convoys of unmarked SUVs became commonplace in some immigrant neighborhoods, where residents could stumble onto masked men in body armor making arrests and throngs of protesters who filled the air with taunts, insults and shrieking whistles.
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation, which flared up into street clashes after federal officers killed and in Minneapolis, became a major political distraction for the Trump administration. The announcement of a drawdown marked a significant retreat as a new AP-NORC poll found that most U.S. adults say Trump鈥檚 immigration policies have .
Operation Metro Surge, which , resulted in more than 4,000 arrests, Homan told reporters Thursday morning, declaring it a success.
鈥淭he surge is leaving Minnesota safer,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檒l say it again: It鈥檚 less of a sanctuary state for criminals.鈥�
But while the administration portrayed its Minnesota targets as dangerous criminals, many had no criminal records and they included working families, children like and U.S. citizens.
Relief and skepticism follow announcement
In a city with a long history of progressive politics, there was skepticism, along with relief, at Homan’s announcement.
鈥淲e will believe it when we see it 鈥� and any ICE presence is a threat to everyone’s safety,鈥� Minneapolis City Council Member Aurin Chowdhury said in a statement. 鈥淲e will be left in the aftermath of destruction, and we will have to pick up the pieces of our communities.鈥�
The surge sent waves of fear through immigrant communities, with children staying home from school or learning remotely, immigrant businesses temporarily shutting down and church pews left empty. Residents delivered thousands of meals to families too afraid to leave home.
A sprawling activist network pushed back against the surge, with thousands of volunteers tracking the convoys of heavily armed federal agents. Clashes were commonplace for a time, with protesters throwing snowballs and spraying graffiti and officers sometimes using tear gas and pepper spray.
Trump was an effort to root out fraud in publicly funded programs, which he blamed on the state’s large Somali community, most of whom are U.S. citizens. But it soon shifted gears toward other ethnic groups, such as Latinos and West Africans.
State and local officials, who frequently clashed with federal authorities, say the swarm of immigration officials has inflicted long-term damage on Minnesota’s economy and immigrant community.
Russ Adams of the Lake Street Council, a nonprofit serving the largely immigrant neighborhood of the same name, estimated that businesses there lost tens of millions of dollars in December and January.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to recover in March, even if 2,000 ICE agents leave tomorrow,鈥� he said last week. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 come back from that.鈥�
Governor urges continued vigilance
Democratic urged residents to remain vigilant in the coming days as immigration officers prepare to leave and said he will not express gratitude for the Trump administration officials who caused 鈥渢his unnecessary, unwarranted and in many cases unconstitutional assault on our state.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be a long road,鈥� Walz said at a news conference. 鈥淢innesotans are decent, caring, loving neighbors and they鈥檙e also some of the toughest people you鈥檒l find. And we鈥檙e in this as long as it takes.鈥�
The governor proposed a $10 million aid package for businesses that have suffered, and he called on Washington to help fund the recovery.
鈥淵ou don鈥檛 get to break things and then just leave without doing something about it,鈥� he said.
Homan was vague about a timeline for the drawdown, but Walz said Homan assured him that officers would start leaving immediately.
鈥淲e will help you get to the airport,鈥� the governor said. 鈥淲e will clear the road to get to the airport. I will pack your damn bags if that鈥檚 what it takes.鈥�
Homeland Security funding dispute continues
Homan’s announcement came as on immigration officers before agreeing to fund DHS. The Trump administration is to prevent federal funding from expiring at the end of the week.
Walz, a former congressman, said the announcement does not make him any readier to support restoring DHS funding. He added that he has been in contact with Democratic leaders in both houses of Congress and urged them to 鈥渉old the line until you get the at least minimum reforms necessary in this rogue agency.鈥�
In Washington, Republican Sen. Rand Paul said the shootings in Minneapolis changed how some Americans saw the immigration crackdown.
鈥淚t鈥檚 clearly evident that the public trust has been lost,鈥� the Kentucky senator said at a Thursday hearing. 鈥淭o restore trust in ICE and Border Patrol, they must admit their mistakes, be honest and forthright with their rules of engagement and pledge to reform.鈥�
Homan says the surge will end but not enforcement
鈥淧resident Trump made a promise of mass deportation, and that鈥檚 what this country is going to get,鈥� Homan said.
Todd Lyons, the acting director of ICE, said during the hearing that the agency is still looking for about 16,840 people in Minnesota with final orders of removal.
Homan in late January after the , of Pretti, and amid about how the operation was being run by Gregory Bovino, a proudly norm-breaking senior Border Patrol official who became the public face of the crackdown.
鈥楧on鈥檛 believe what they say’
Later Thursday, Sheila Rzepecki was among people visiting a makeshift memorial for Renee Good, an array of candles, posters, flowers and cards left at the scene of her shooting.
Her son is disabled, she said, and his health aide, who is from Colombia, has been too scared to leave her home even though she is in the U.S. legally.
鈥淭his is the fear they put into such wonderful people in our community,鈥� Rzepecki said.
She dismissed the claim that the surge left the region safer, saying: 鈥淭he people they are rounding up are the people that are so important to our community. Don’t believe what they say.鈥�
Many activists said the fight is not over. Lisa Erbes, a leader of the protest group Indivisible Twin Cities, said officials must be held accountable.
鈥淧eople have died. Families have been torn apart,鈥� Erbes said. 鈥淲e can鈥檛 just say this is over and forget the pain and suffering that has been put on the people of Minnesota.鈥�
In New York, Mayor Zohran Mamdani met in the afternoon with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey to discuss ways to protect immigrants.
鈥淭hey thought they could break us, but a love for our neighbors and a resolve to endure can outlast an occupation,鈥� Frey said on social media. 鈥淭hese patriots of Minneapolis are showing that it鈥檚 not just about resistance 鈥� standing with our neighbors is deeply American.鈥�
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Associated Press reporters Mark Vancleave in Minneapolis; John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio; Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia; Elliot Spagat in San Diego; Rebecca Santana and Nathan Ellgren in Washington; and Jake Offenhartz in New York contributed.
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