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By Jenna Sundel and Gabe Whisnant
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Federal authorities are preparing a targeted immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota that would focus primarily on Somali immigrants living unlawfully in the United States, according to a person familiar with the planning.
The operation, which could begin in the coming days, is expected to concentrate on people in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area who have final deportation orders, the source told the Associated Press.
Teams of immigration agents would spread across the Twin Cities in what the person described as a high-priority sweep, though the plans remain fluid and could change.
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Why It Matters
The move comes as President Donald Trump has escalated his rhetoric about Minnesota’s Somali community, alarming local leaders who say it has heightened fears of profiling.
"They contribute nothing. I don’t want them in our country,” Trump said during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. “Their country is no good for a reason. Your country stinks and we don’t want them in our country.”
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Trump and other officials in his administration have recently made comments about Somalis living in the U.S. after conservative news outlet City Journal claimed that taxpayer dollars from defrauded government programs were given to the Somali group al-Shabab.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a social media post on 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.”
Minnesota has the largest Somali community in the United States, many of whom fled during a civil war in the East African country.
"We welcome support in investigating and prosecuting crime. But pulling a PR stunt and indiscriminately targeting immigrants is not a real solution to a problem," Walz said on X.
What To Know
Hundreds of people are expected to be targeted in the operation, the source told AP. People who aren’t targeted but lack legal status could also be detained if encountered during the sweep, similarly to previous immigration operations.
Department of 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.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey responded to the reports in comments to reporters on Tuesday, stating, "To our Somali community, we love you and we stand with you. That commitment is rock solid. Minneapolis is proud to be home to the largest Somali community in the entire country. They've been here for decades."
Jaylani Hussein, a Somali American who is executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said around 95 percent of Somalis in Minnesota are U.S. citizens. Hussein said the reported plan is yet another example of the Trump administration “demonizing the Muslim community.”
What People Are Saying
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told reporters: "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."
President Donald Trump said at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday: "Somalians ripped off that state for billions of dollars. Billions. Every year, billions of dollars, and they contribute nothing."
This article includes reporting by the Associated Press.
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Update 12/02/25, 4:10 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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