Federal authorities are preparing a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota that would primarily focus on Somali immigrants living unlawfully in the U.S., a move that comes as President Donald Trump has escalated rhetoric about the state’s Somali community, according to a person familiar with the planning.
The operation could begin in the coming days and is expected to zero in on people in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area who have final orders of deportation, the person said. Teams of immigration agents would spread across the Twin Cities in what the person described as a directed, high-priority sweep, though the plans remain subject to change.
The prospect of an immigration operation is likely to deepen tensions in Minnesota as Trump has become increasingly focused on people of Somalian descent living in the U.S., saying recently that they “have caused a lot of trouble,” rhetoric that community leaders say has inflamed tensions and revived fears of profiling.
Trump said during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday that he did not want Somali immigrants in the country, saying they are too reliant on the U.S. social safety net and add little to the nation.
“They contribute nothing. I don’t want them in our country,” he said. “Their country is no good for a reason.”
Minnesota has the nation’s largest Somali community. Many fled the long civil war in their east African country and were drawn to the state’s welcoming social programs.
Hundreds of people are expected to be targeted in the operation, the person said. As with previous immigration operations, so-called incidental arrests are possible, meaning people who aren’t targeted but lack legal status could also be detained if encountered during the sweep, the person said.
The person spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations that have not been publicly disclosed. The operation was first reported by The New York Times.
Minneapolis police won't help with immigration enforcement
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said on Tuesday that the city’s police officers, many of whom are Somali, will not work with any federal agents doing immigration enforcement, saying “it's not their job.”
“Targeting Somali people means that due process will be violated, mistakes will be made, and let’s be clear, it means that American citizens will be detained for no other reason than the fact that they look like they are Somali," he said. "That is not now and will never be a legitimate reason.”
Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said the agency would not discuss “future or potential operations.”
“Every day, ICE enforces the laws of the nation across the country. What makes someone a target of ICE is not their race or ethnicity, but the fact that they are in the country illegally,” McLaughlin said.
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Trump ramps up criticism of Somalis
Trump and other officials in his administration have used increasingly harsh language in recent days against Somalis living in the U.S., after a conservative news outlet, City Journal, claimed that taxpayer dollars from defrauded government programs have flowed to the Somali group al-Shabab.
Last month, Trump said he was terminating Temporary Protected Status for Somali migrants living in Minnesota, a legal safeguard against deportation for immigrants from certain countries. A report produced for Congress in August put the number of Somalis covered by the program at just 705 nationwide.
Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz said Tuesday that anyone committing fraud should go to prison, but he criticized the Trump administration’s actions.
“Sitting on the sidelines and throwing out accusations — and let’s be very clear, demonizing an entire population and lying to people about the safety and security of this state — is beneath that,” said the 2024 Democratic vice presidential candidate.
Trump has claimed immigrants from Somalia were “completely taking over the once great State of Minnesota” and has demeaned Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee last year.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a social media post Monday that his agency was “investigating allegations that under the feckless mismanagement of the Biden Administration and Governor Tim Walz, hardworking Minnesotans’ tax dollars may have been diverted to the terrorist organization Al-Shabaab.”
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Nearly all Somalis in Minnesota are citizens
Jaylani Hussein, a Somali American who is executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said his group has heard of “less than a dozen” immigration arrests within the local Somali community in recent days.
But Hussein said around 95% of Somalis in Minnesota are U.S. citizens, so the numbers of those at earlier stages of the immigration process are a “pretty small” proportion of the community. He said they estimate that 50% of the community was born in the U.S.
“We believe this is political rhetoric and an attack against our community,” Hussein said. “But additional ICE agents means additional pressure on the wider immigrant community,” he said, referring to Hispanics and other Africans.
Hussein said the reported crackdown plan is yet another example of the Trump administration “demonizing the Muslim community.” And he said it’s not new that when somebody in the community commits a crime, the entire community will get accused. He said that’s been true of other ethnic groups through American history.
