Protests spread after Minneapolis shooting as Trump defends ICE presence

Protests continued in Minneapolis and across several major US cities after federal immigration agents shot dead 37-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretti during an enforcement operation on Saturday.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz described the country as being at an “inflection point” and renewed calls for federal agents to be withdrawn from the city, arguing that their presence was fuelling unrest. Multiple candlelight vigils were held over the weekend, while demonstrators marched through city streets chanting “ICE out now” and “No more Minnesota nice – Minneapolis on strike”. Protests were also reported in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said agents fired in self-defence after Pretti “brandished” a gun while resisting attempts to disarm him. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem repeated that claim, but local authorities and eyewitnesses have disputed the account, saying the firearm was legally registered and had been removed before he was shot. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said federal agents blocked state officers from accessing the scene despite a search warrant, adding that the situation was hampering cooperation between local and federal law enforcement.

Pretti’s family rejected claims that he posed a threat, calling statements by the administration “reprehensible and disgusting”, and said he had no criminal record beyond traffic violations. Court records cited by the Associated Press also show no prior criminal convictions. Videos circulating online appear to show a scuffle between agents and Pretti shortly before the shooting, with witnesses saying he was holding a phone, not a weapon.

Trump signalled he may eventually withdraw ICE agents from Minneapolis but offered no timeline. “At some point we will leave. We’ve done, they’ve done a phenomenal job,” he told the Wall Street Journal in an interview published on Sunday. Later, in a post on Truth Social, Trump demanded that Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and “every Democrat Governor and Mayor” cooperate with federal authorities, blaming “sanctuary cities” for what he called rising chaos and violence.

The White House has framed the operation as a public safety effort aimed at deporting criminals, and has described Pretti as a “domestic terrorist”, a label strongly contested by his family and local officials. Federal authorities had said agents were searching for another suspect with a serious criminal history, but Minnesota’s Department of Corrections later said public records showed only old traffic offences.

Pretti is the second person to be fatally shot in Minneapolis this month during immigration enforcement operations. Earlier this month, ICE agents shot dead 37-year-old Renee Good while she was observing a raid, according to her family’s lawyers, who have urged the public to “trust their own eyes” when reviewing video of the latest shooting.