Pro and anti-ICE demonstrators clash in US city of Minneapolis
發佈日期: 2026-01-18 20:02
TVB News
According to US media reports, the Pentagon has about 1,500 soldiers ready to possibly deploy to the state of Minnesota where tensions continue to flare over deportation operations by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Meanwhile, clashes between pro- and anti-ICE demonstrators erupted at a rally in Minneapolis organised by an anti-Islam influencer.
The Washington Post reported on Sunday that the 1,500 active-duty soldiers are placed on prepare-to-deploy orders in case violence escalates.
The move comes amid US President Donald Trump's threat to institute the Insurrection Act to dispatch military forces if state officials do not stop protesters from targeting immigration officers.
The White House told the Post in a statement that it is typical for the Pentagon "to be prepared for any decision the President may or may not make."
Right-wing provocateur Jake Lang, who served four years in jail for crimes tied to the January 6th attack in the US Capitol, hosted an anti-Islam, anti-Somali and pro-ICE demonstration on the steps of Minneapolis City Hall on Saturday.
Only a small number of ICE supporters showed up for Lang's event.
A much larger group of counterprotestors converged on the site. They chanted slogans and threw objects at Lang and his associates, chasing them off the scene.
The counterprotestors also demanded at least one person to take off a shirt which they deemed objectionable.
Lang later claimed being stabbed during the face-off and alleged he was attacked by one of the counterprotestors.
Also in one of the daily clashes in the Twin Cities, protestors were seen throwing snowballs and water balloons before an armored police van.
The Trump administration has made Somali immigrants a special target of the deportation crackdown, focusing on fraud allegations in Minnesota, home to the largest Somali community in the US.
In Karmel Mall, one of the economic hubs for the Somali population in South Minnesota, rows of businesses stood shuttered inside the once bustling complex. Many employees were on edge, afraid to go to work or leave their homes.
An AP reporter said: "Recently business owners here have said that the ICE presence in town has scared away their customers. A lot of employees don't want to come to work. Some vendors don't even bother opening up their shop because they don't expect any customers. And a lot of folks here are worried about racial profiling and worried that even their citizenship won't be enough."
