The far-left network that helped put Alex Pretti in harm’s way, then made him a martyr
The skirmish that led to Saturday’s fatal shooting of an agitator by Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis and the response that followed were driven by a complex network of far-left organizations with a wide range of causes, a Fox News Digital investigation found. A coordinated web of encrypted chats, street alerts and tracking of ICE “Abductors” in a sophisticated database reviewed by Fox News Digital shows that agitators were already mobilized at the scene where 37-year-old Alex Pretti was killed minutes before any shots were fired. ICE and Border Patrol agents were there to arrest an illegal immigrant criminal, and Pretti and others were there, outside a donut shop, to meet them as part of a strategic pattern of organized interference with law enforcement operations. Over the following hours, a national network of socialist, communist and Marxist-Leninist cells in the United States leveraged the tragic fatality into a nationwide protest operation. While grief and outrage over Pretti’s death is genuine, the network’s real-time rapid response, using short sensational video clips and emojis as weapons of propaganda, offers a window into the disciplined logistics, messaging and coordination of far-left warriors fomenting insurgency-like confrontation with authorities. VANCE CALLS MINNEAPOLIS UNREST ‘ENGINEERED CHAOS’ AFTER DEADLY SHOOTING “This level of engineered chaos is unique to Minneapolis. It is the direct consequence of far left agitators, working with local authorities,” Vice President JD Vance observed in a Sunday post on X. The encrypted Signal messages obtained by Fox News Digital in real time show that anti-ICE “rapid responders” were actively tracking, broadcasting and summoning “backup” around federal agents outside Glam Doll Donuts on Nicollet Avenue, where the shooting occurred. Local “rapid responders” made at least 26 entries into a database called “MN ICE Plates” in the critical hours before and after the killing, documenting the license plate numbers and details of alleged ICE vehicles they claimed to see around Nicollet Avenue. The entry at row 344 read, “At the nicollet [sic] murder,” chronicling a black Jeep Wagoneer at the location with agents allegedly “involved in shooting.” Row 338 had a “Glam Doll Donuts” entry, tracking a black Ford Taurus. BONDI BLAMES MINNEAPOLIS LEADERS AFTER ARMED SUSPECT KILLED, UNREST ERUPTS DURING ICE OPERATION At 9:50 a.m. ET, just before the killing, a user identified as “Willow” shared a 22-second video on an encrypted Signal chat for anti-ICE “rapid responders.” “26and 3rd,” wrote “Willow,” quickly following up with, “Outside Glam Doll.” The video showed two agents, one wearing a vest marked “POLICE,” studying the front door of Glam Doll before walking away, past a sign in the window that read, “ICE OUT OF MINNESOTA.” As the camera rolled, the person filming yelled, “No!” The camera followed the agents as they returned to a maroon Dodge Durango, passing another sign in the window that read, “ALL WELCOME HERE.” In the video, someone shouted, “Get out of here!” Just three minutes later, at 9:53 a.m. ET, a second Signal user, “Salacious B. Crumb,” escalated the alert, summoning additional responders and citing the same vehicle and agents. “Backup needed at the Black Forest Inn parking lot on Nicollet Ave just south of 26th Street,” the message read. DHS SAYS ICE AGENTS RAMMED BY VEHICLES AMID MINNEAPOLIS ENFORCEMENT SURGE: ‘AGGRESSIVELY ASSAULTED’ “Multiple vehicles with many agents appear to be staging there,” the alert continued. “One confirmed ICE vehicle seen was a maroon Dodge Durango [plate number], but it has driven away northbound on Nicollet.” Fox News Digital has redacted the Florida license plate number included in the original message. ICE Assistant Director Marcos Charles said Sunday that the violence on the streets was “not a coincidence,” considering the “chaos and mayhem” that agitators are fomenting in Minneapolis. At the same press conference, Customs and Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Greg Bovino confirmed that Pretti was “on the scene several minutes” before the fatal shooting. Video of the scene shows that as Pretti stepped into the middle of Nicolle Street to direct traffic, fellow agitators could be heard blowing whistles to alert locals that ICE officers were around. Soon after, Pretti ended up in a street confrontation with Customs and Border Patrol agents, across the street from Glam Doll Donuts outside a worn storefront marked “NEW AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT CENTER,” a nonprofit focused on immigration entry programs for Somalis. Within minutes, at about 10:05 a.m. ET, at least one Customs and Border Patrol agent shot Pretti, killing him. MINNESOTA ICE OFFICIAL URGES PROTESTS TO REMAIN PEACEFUL AMID TENSIONS ‘LIKE NOTHING I’VE EVER SEEN BEFORE’ At 10:18 a.m. ET, the Signal network erupted. Using a red phone emoji to signal an all-points alert, a message blasted out: “☎️ easy. URGENT: observers urgently requested at glam doll donuts @ 26th & nicollet [sic],” the alert continued. “an observer has been shot by ice, unknown condition, emts [emergency medical technicians] present, please be safe. EDIT: medics requested to join perimeter in case agents start gassing. be aware there are many agents and mpd [Minneapolis Police Department] officers present.” Within minutes, far-left activists descended on Nicollet Avenue. Soon after, a video showed corrugated boxes of supplies apparently lined up on a Minneapolis sidewalk for protesters, including boxes marked “DESINER MASKS” [sic] and “FREE WINTER HATS,” next to piles of bottled water. MINNESOTA AGITATORS STALK, PELT BORDER PATROL AGENTS WITH FOOD AND SPIT AT GAS STATIONS, DHS SAYS Within hours, socialist leaders turbocharged their “rapid responders” in Minneapolis and mobilized street protesters from New York City to Los Angeles. Media outlets, including CNN and MSNOW, described “angry protesters” but failed to identify the ideological networks behind the mobilization, even as protesters flashed their signs with their logos and names, touting socialism, communism and Marxism, on camera. The Minneapolis activation marked the beginning of an almost instantaneous weekend surge by far-left organizations, including hardened socialist and communist groups operating in an ecosystem that national security experts describe as an insurgent-style operation designed to exploit tragedy to wage a domestic political war. The strategy mirrors past mobilizations, including the aftermath of
Bill Clinton says Trump admin ‘told us not to believe what we’ve seen’ after latest Minnesota shooting
Former President Bill Clinton said on Sunday, after another fatal shooting in Minneapolis involving federal immigration agents, that agents are engaging in “increasingly aggressive and antagonistic tactics” and that the Trump administration told Americans not to believe what they can see for themselves. Alex Pretti, 37, was shot and killed on Saturday by Border Patrol agents while recording federal immigration operations in Minneapolis. An ICU nurse, Pretti appeared to be attempting to attend to a woman agents knocked down when he was sprayed with an irritant, pushed to the ground and beaten. An agent was seen pulling Pretti’s gun from his waistband before other agents fired several shots and killed him. The shooting follows recent unrest over the ICE-involved killing of Renee Nicole Good in the same city earlier this month. “In recent weeks, we’ve watched horrible scenes play out in Minneapolis and other communities that I never thought would take place in America. People, including children, have been seized from their homes, workplaces, and the street by masked federal agents,” Clinton said in a statement. BARACK AND MICHELLE OBAMA SLAM ICE AFTER MINNEAPOLIS SHOOTING, URGE ACCOUNTABILITY “Peaceful protesters and citizens exercising their constitutional right to observe and document law enforcement have been arrested, beaten, teargassed, and most searingly, in the cases of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, shot and killed,” he continued. Clinton said “this is unacceptable” and “should have been avoided.” “To make matters even worse, at every turn, the people in charge have lied to us, told us not to believe what we’ve seen with our own eyes, and pushed increasingly aggressive and antagonistic tactics, including impeding investigations by local authorities,” he said. BORDER PATROL-INVOLVED SHOOTING REPORTED IN MINNEAPOLIS “Over the course of a lifetime, we face only a few moments where the decisions we make and the actions we take will shape our history for years to come,” the former president added. “This is one of them. If we give our freedoms away after 250 years, we might never get them back. It is up to all of us who believe in the promise of American democracy to stand up, speak out, and show that our nation still belongs to We the People.”
Barack and Michelle Obama slam ICE after Minneapolis shooting, urge accountability
Former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama said the killing of Alex Pretti was a national wake-up call, arguing that federal immigration agents in Minnesota are using tactics that intimidate and endanger residents while operating without sufficient accountability. In their joint Sunday statement, the Obamas tied Pretti’s death to weeks of escalating federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota that has sparked protests, controversy and clashes between local residents and agents, saying the broader response to his shooting illustrates how the tactics being used have widened divisions and heightened tensions nationwide. Federal officials said Pretti, a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident and Veterans Affairs ICU nurse, was fatally shot by a Border Patrol agent during an early-morning immigration enforcement operation targeting Jose Huerta-Chuma, an illegal immigrant with a criminal history. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials said Pretti approached agents while armed with a 9mm pistol and “violently resisted” when officers attempted to disarm him. He was pronounced dead at the scene, and state officials said he had a valid permit to carry a firearm. BORDER PATROL-INVOLVED SHOOTING REPORTED IN MINNEAPOLIS Framing the shooting as a broader warning, the Obamas urged Americans to consider what they described as the wider implications of the incident and its aftermath. “The killing of Alex Pretti is a heartbreaking tragedy. It should also be a wake-up call to every American, regardless of party, that many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault,” the Obamas said. “Federal law enforcement and immigration agents have a tough job. But Americans expect them to carry out their duties in a lawful, accountable way, and to work with, rather than against, state and local officials to ensure public safety.” The Obamas said that is not what they are witnessing in Minnesota, arguing they are seeing the opposite. NARRATIVES CLASH AFTER TRUMP AND VICTIM’S FAMILY REACT TO SECOND MINNEAPOLIS ICE SHOOTING “For weeks now, people across the country have been rightly outraged by the spectacle of masked ICE recruits and other federal agents acting with impunity and engaging in tactics that seem designed to intimidate, harass, provoke and endanger the residents of a major American city,” they said. “These unprecedented tactics – which even the former top lawyer of the Department of Homeland Security in the first Trump administration has characterized as embarrassing, lawless and cruel – have now resulted in the fatal shootings of two U.S. citizens.” The statement continued, accusing the Trump administration and DHS officials of failing to impose “some semblance of discipline and accountability” over agents deployed to Minnesota, and instead appearing “eager to escalate the situation.” The Obamas also took aim at the Trump administration’s public explanations for both Pretti’s and Renee Good’s deaths – the latter a Minneapolis mother of three shot and killed on Jan. 7 by an ICE agent during a federal enforcement action – suggesting officials were drawing conclusions without thorough investigations and before all the evidence had been fully reviewed. FREY, KLOBUCHAR CALL FOR ICE TO LEAVE MINNEAPOLIS FOLLOWING DEADLY CBP SHOOTING IN CITY “This has to stop,” the Obamas said. “I would hope that after this most recent tragedy, administration officials will reconsider their approach, and start finding ways to work constructively with Governor [Tim] Walz and Mayor [Jacob] Frey as well as state and local police to avert more chaos and achieve legitimate law enforcement goals.” They also encouraged Americans to support protests in Minneapolis and across the country. “In the meantime, every American should support and draw inspiration from the wave of peaceful protests in Minneapolis and other parts of the country,” the statement added. “They are a timely reminder that ultimately it’s up to each of us as citizens to speak out against injustice, protect our basic freedoms, and hold our government accountable.” Fox News Digital has reached out to the Obamas for further comment.
Tim Walz compares Minnesota ICE actions to Holocaust and Anne Frank: ‘Hiding in their houses’
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Sunday likened federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota to the Holocaust and “The Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank following the second fatal shooting involving federal officers in Minneapolis. The incident on Saturday left 37-year-old Alex Pretti, a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) ICU nurse, dead during an encounter with immigration agents. Federal officials initially stated that Pretti was armed and resisted agents, while local accounts indicate Pretti was disarmed before he was fatally shot. During a press briefing, Walz claimed that some children in Minnesota now feel fear or uncertainty about going outside due to aggressive federal immigration operations. “We have got children in Minnesota hiding in their houses, afraid to go outside. Many of us grew up reading that story of Anne Frank,” Walz said, referring to the German-Jewish teenager who documented her life in hiding during the Nazi persecution in World War II. NARRATIVES CLASH AFTER TRUMP AND VICTIM’S FAMILY REACT TO SECOND MINNEAPOLIS SHOOTING “Somebody is going to write that children’s story about Minnesota, and there’s one person who can end this now,” he said, referring to President Donald Trump. Walz further criticized Trump, saying the president smeared the victim, gaslit the entire country and sought to conceal evidence related to the killing. “This family has gone through enough,” Walz said of Pretti’s relatives. “And to have the most powerful man in the world drag their dead son with absolutely no evidence and gaslight the entire country.” “Sitting behind a keyboard at 2 a.m. and besmirching a VA nurse and a son and a coworker and a friend is despicable beyond all description,” he added. TODD BLANCHE WARNS AMERICANS ‘SHOULD BE WORRIED’ ABOUT MINNESOTA PROTESTS AFTER CHURCH DISRUPTION Trump and senior White House officials defended the federal response after Saturday’s fatal shooting. Trump previously noted that Pretti was armed and carrying two extra magazines during the confrontation, while White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller called Pretti a “would-be assassin” and “domestic terrorist” who “tried to murder federal law enforcement.” Homeland Security Sec. Kristi Noem also noted that the victim “violently resisted” arrest, saying that the federal agent fired his weapon “fearing for his life.” Following Walz’s remarks, Trump urged the governor in a post on Truth Social to stop “encouraging Leftwing Agitators to unlawfully obstruct their operations,” warning that sanctuary city rhetoric has “created dangerous circumstances for EVERYONE involved.” “Tragically, two American Citizens have lost their lives as a result of this Democrat ensued chaos,” he wrote. DHS SLAMS DEMS FOR COMPLAINING ABOUT IMMIGRATION LAW: ‘IT IS QUITE LITERALLY THEIR JOB TO CHANGE IT’ Walz continued to describe Pretti as a modest American, emphasizing that he held a legally licensed concealed-carry permit, and blasted federal officials, including Vice President JD Vance and Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino, for unfairly portraying Pretti as a “crazed domestic terrorist.” “Beloved by his family, accomplished ICU nurse, skillful in ability to work with veterans, someone who is beloved by the community, no criminal record, lawful firearms owner,” Walz said. “And then you heard the most powerful people in the world, certainly in this country — president, vice president, Gregory Bovino, Kristi Noem — narrate to you what you were looking at, that this was a domestic terrorist, crazed, running at law enforcement with the intent to kill massive numbers of that, sullying his name within minutes of this event happening.” ANTI-ICE AGITATOR ALLEGEDLY BITES OFF FEDERAL OFFICER’S FINGER DURING MINNEAPOLIS ATTACK Walz also alleged that federal officials blocked state investigators from accessing the scene and sought to destroy or alter evidence related to the shooting. “Then closing the crime scene, sweeping away the evidence, defying a court order and not allowing anyone to look at it,” he said. “I don’t care if you are conservative and you are flying a Donald Trump flag… If we cannot all agree that the smearing of an American citizen and besmirching everything they stood for and asking us not to believe what we saw, I don’t know what else to tell you.” The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension filed a lawsuit Saturday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota seeking to prevent the destruction or alteration of evidence related to the shooting. The lawsuit names the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Patrol, as well as Attorney General Pam Bondi as defendants. Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
Dems silent on Minnesota church disruption after pressing Bondi to use FACE Act on pro-lifers
The Democratic headliners of a letter sent just months ago that demanded Attorney General Pam Bondi “fully enforce” the FACE Act against pro-life demonstrators were silent when asked by Fox News Digital if the same emphasis should be put toward prosecuting the Minnesota church disruptors. With Bondi now bringing FACE Act charges against the agitators disrupting a Baptist service Jan. 18, those Democrats who signed the letter may face a narrowing decision, publicly back the prosecutions under the FACE Act, break with the same attorney general they pressured in 2025, or remain silent as Republicans demand prosecutions in this aspect. In March 2025, Democratic Reps. Sean Casten and Jan Schakowsky of Illinois and Jerrold Nadler of New York headlined the 75-member letter demanding that Bondi “fully enforce the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act and ensure women and health care providers are not threatened, harassed, or abused while trying to enter reproductive health care facilities.” Fox News Digital reached out by email and phone to the offices of Casten, Schakowsky and Nadler to ask whether they would similarly agree to have the law — originally spearheaded by “liberal lion” Ted Kennedy — be used in earnest as well against left-wing agitators who disrupted a Twin Cities church service in mid-January. MAGISTRATE JUDGE REJECTS CHARGES AGAINST DON LEMON IN CONNECTION WITH ANTI-ICE CHURCH PROTEST One of the reverends at the Baptist church was reportedly connected with local Immigration and Customs Enforcemet (ICE) operations. The three lawmakers did not respond when asked whether Bondi should similarly pursue federal FACE Act charges against the agitators or whether they had any further comment on the heckling of the minister by people like former CNN host Don Lemon. Fox News Digital also reached out to as many of the other 72 Democrats listed as possible — including Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Bonnie Watson-Coleman, D-N.J., and Steve Cohen, D-Tenn. — but received a response from only one. A representative for Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., acknowledged the inquiry and said they were “looking into” the matter. MINNESOTA PASTOR CONDEMNS ANTI-ICE AGITATORS WHO INTERRUPTED SERVICE: ‘SHAMEFUL AND UNLAWFUL’ In their letter, the Democrats wrote that limiting the Department of Justice from enforcing “bipartisan law will put at risk the well-being and security of patients, providers, and others at reproductive health care facilities.” “Individuals have the right to freedom of speech and the right to peacefully gather to protest, ” they wrote. “However, individuals do not have the right to use physical force or intimidation as these acts pose a threat to those attempting to access a range of health care services — from abortion care to breast cancer screenings, prenatal care, reproductive counseling, and in-vitro fertilization.” The FACE Act has provisions for both abortion clinics and public exercise of First Amendment rights to freedom of religion. Nonetheless, Bondi’s office has already pursued charges against alleged disruptors, including Chauntyll Louisa Allen — a St. Paul, Minnesota,school board member — and Nekima Levy Armstrong, who authorities said played a “key role” in organizing the “coordinated attack on Cities Church in St. Paul.” “Listen loud and clear, we do not tolerate attacks on places of worship,” Bondi tweeted after the incident. Fox News’ Jake Gibson and Charlie Horan contributed to this report.
Carney pushes back on Trump’s 100% tariff threat over China trade deals with Canada amid tensions
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Sunday that Canada has no plans to pursue a free trade deal with China, pushing back against President Trump’s threat to slap 100% tariffs on Canadian goods. Carney said Canada’s recent agreement with China only rolled back tariffs in a few sectors that had been hit in recent years and did not amount to a free trade deal. He noted that under the U.S.–Mexico–Canada Agreement, Canada has committed not to pursue free trade agreements with nonmarket economies without prior notification. “We have no intention of doing that with China or any other nonmarket economy,” Carney said. “What we have done with China is to rectify some issues that developed in the last couple of years.” Carney made his first official visit to China earlier this month as he and Chinese President Xi Jinping work together to forge an improved bond between their countries. The leaders reached an agreement that would allow up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles to enter the Canadian market at a lower tariff rate of 6.1%, Carney’s office said. US TRADE REP SHRUGS OFF WORLD LEADERS’ SWIPES AT TRUMP AMID DAVOS BACKLASH In 2024, Canada matched U.S. trade policy by imposing a 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles and a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum. China retaliated with 100% duties on Canadian canola oil and meal and 25% tariffs on pork and seafood. Trump issued his tariff threat in a social media post, warning that if Carney “thinks he is going to make Canada a ‘Drop Off Port’ for China to send goods and products into the United States, he is sorely mistaken.” TRUMP WARNS CANADA OF 100% TARIFFS IF IT BECOMES CHINA’S ‘DROP OFF PORT’ WITH NEW POTENTIAL TRADE DEAL In another post on Sunday, Trump claimed Canada is being taken over by China. “China is successfully and completely taking over the once Great Country of Canada,” Trump’s post read. “So sad to see it happen. I only hope they leave Ice Hockey alone!” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
White House accuses Walz of undermining law enforcement, blocking ICE cooperation
The Trump administration is sharply criticizing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, accusing him of undermining law enforcement and blocking cooperation with federal immigration authorities. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt took aim at Walz in a social media post, writing that the governor has failed to cooperate with federal agencies, especially Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), during large-scale enforcement operations. “Tim Walz does NOT believe in law and order,” Leavitt’s post read. “No amount of propaganda from his allies in the liberal media will convince the American people otherwise.” Walz has sharply rebuked the federal presence following several controversial shootings involving immigration agents, including the death of Minneapolis resident Renée Good in early January and again on Sunday a day after another fatal shooting that resulted in the death of 37-year-old Alex Pretti. BONDI VOWS ACCOUNTABILITY AFTER CHURCH ATTACK, SAYS MINNESOTA ‘A MESS RIGHT NOW’ “Minnesota believes in law and order,” Walz wrote in a post on X earlier Sunday. “We believe in peace. And we believe that Trump needs to pull his 3,000 untrained agents out of Minnesota before they kill another American in the street.” Leavitt claimed the governor has refused to allow law enforcement to work with ICE to arrest and remove what she described as “dangerous criminal illegal aliens.” According to Leavitt, since President Donald Trump took office, Walz has released “nearly 500 criminal illegal aliens back onto Minnesota’s streets” rather than transferring them to federal custody. MAYOR FREY SHARES HIGHLY PRODUCED VIDEO SPEAKING ON LATINO RADIO STATION: ‘YOU’RE BRAVE AND YOU’RE TOUGH’ She further accused Walz of spreading “malicious lies” about federal law enforcement officers, saying his rhetoric has put officers in danger while they carry out immigration enforcement operations. Leavitt said Walz has encouraged “left-wing agitators to stalk and record federal officers,” leading to officers being “doxxed, targeted, impeded, and placed in extremely dangerous situations.” She also pointed to Walz’s handling of civil unrest in 2020, writing, “Don’t forget, this is the same Tim Walz who allowed rioters to burn Minneapolis in the summer of 2020” following the murder of George Floyd. She further accused Walz of overseeing “massive fraud schemes” in Minnesota that she said resulted in “tens of billions of dollars in stolen American taxpayer funds.” Leavitt said Trump “will never back down” from his pledge to deport violent criminal illegal aliens, a promise she said nearly 80 million Americans supported over what she called the “Open Borders Agenda of Kamala Harris and Tim Walz.” She urged Walz to change course and cooperate with federal authorities. “Governor Walz should do the right thing by Minnesotans and work WITH, rather than AGAINST, federal law enforcement,” Leavitt wrote, pointing to states like Florida and Texas and cities like Washington, D.C., as examples where cooperation has led to “peace and safety.”
Vance calls Minneapolis unrest ‘engineered chaos’ after deadly shooting
Vice President JD Vance called the unrest in Minnesota “engineered chaos” in the wake of another fatal, federal agent-involved shooting over the weekend. On Saturday, 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a Minneapolis nurse who was carrying a licensed handgun while protesting a federal immigration enforcement operation, was fatally shot by a U.S. Border Patrol agent. Authorities say Pretti resisted arrest after trying to intervene in the operation. In response to the shooting, Vance accused “far-left agitators working with local authorities” of creating the conditions that led to the confrontation between Pretti and the border patrol agents. SENATE DEMS REVOLT AGAINST DHS FUNDING BILL AMID MINNEAPOLIS CHAOS, HIKING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN RISK “This level of engineered chaos is unique to Minneapolis,” Vance said in a post on X. “It is the direct consequence of far left agitators, working with local authorities.” His remarks come as a familiar network of far-left groups mobilize nationwide, often coalescing around disparate causes. FAMILIAR GROUPS MOBILIZE IMMEDIATELY AFTER ICE SHOOTING OF MINNESOTA PROTESTER In Minneapolis, the unrest intensified after the shooting, leading several local officials, including Gov. Tim Walz, to call on the Department of Homeland Security and the Trump administration to pull Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from the city. Walz said in a post on X that he spoke with the White House “after another horrific shooting by federal agents this morning.” “Minnesota has had it,” Walz said. “This is sickening. The President must end this operation. Pull the thousands of violent, untrained officers out of Minnesota. Now.” On Sunday, Walz said: “Minnesota believes in law and order. We believe in peace,” and called on Trump to pull “untrained agents” out of the state. But the White House wasn’t keen on budging. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to local leadership calling for the withdrawal of federal law enforcement from Minnesota, writing on X that the focus should not be on removing officers but on removing “dangerous criminal illegal aliens” from the state. “The Democrats have their priorities completely upside down. They will not keep the American people safe,” Leavitt wrote. ICE OFFICERS INJURED AFTER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT STRIKES AGENTS Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials said Pretti approached agents while armed with a 9 mm pistol and two magazines and “violently resisted” when officers tried to disarm him, prompting one agent to fire. Local video footage and eyewitness accounts, however, appear to show Pretti holding only his phone before he was pepper-sprayed and pinned to the ground, raising questions about the government’s account of the encounter. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem told Fox News on Sunday that she grieves for Pretti’s family and vowed a thorough investigation. “We can’t have individuals that are impeding law enforcement operations and then showing up with guns and weapons and no ID and confronting law enforcement like that,” Noem said. “It is one of the reasons that we see situations like this unfold.” He was shot several times and pronounced dead at the scene. State officials later said Pretti had a lawful permit to carry the firearm. Minnesota Democrats pushed back on the White House’s characterization, arguing the federal operation escalated tensions and endangered residents, including those not targeted by immigration enforcement.
Trump hails ‘great and very brave’ UK soldiers after slamming NATO allies’ Afghanistan service
President Donald Trump praised the soldiers of the United Kingdom who served alongside the U.S. in Afghanistan on Saturday, clarifying his previous criticism of NATO allies. Trump had earlier criticized NATO troops who served in Afghanistan, arguing they had stayed “a little bit back” from the frontlines during the conflict. His statement was met with outrage in the U.K., however, where Prime Minister Kier Starmer called it “insulting and frankly, appalling.” “The GREAT and very BRAVE soldiers of the United Kingdom will always be with the United States of America! In Afghanistan, 457 died, many were badly injured, and they were among the greatest of all warriors,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “It’s a bond too strong to ever be broken. The U.K. Military, with tremendous Heart and Soul, is second to none (except for the U.S.A.!). We love you all, and always will!” he continued. THE IMPORTANCE OF PRESIDENT TRUMP’S UK VISIT SHOULDN’T BE UNDERESTIMATED The social media post partially walks back his previous criticism of NATO, made during an interview on Fox Business. “We have never really asked anything of them,” he said. “You know, they’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan or this or that, and they did. They stayed a little back, little off the front lines.” Starmer’s office says the prime minister raised the issue with Trump during a phone call this weekend. UK READY TO SEND TROOPS, JETS, SHIPS IF TRUMP CLINCHES UKRAINE CEASEFIRE, DEFENSE CHIEF SAYS “The Prime Minister raised the brave and heroic British and American soldiers who fought side by side in Afghanistan, many of whom never returned home,” a spokesperson said. “We must never forget their sacrifice.” Trump’s initial remarks also drew a direct rebuke from Prince Harry, who served two tours in Afghanistan. “I served there. I made lifelong friends there. And I lost friends there,” Harry said. “Those sacrifices deserve to be spoken about truthfully and with respect, as we all remain united and loyal to the defense of diplomacy and peace,” he added.
Judge blocks Trump admin from ‘destroying or altering’ evidence in deadly Minneapolis shooting
A federal judge in Minnesota has blocked the Trump administration from “destroying or altering evidence” related to a deadly shooting involving a Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis on Saturday. The ruling came after the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office and the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension filed a lawsuit Saturday to prevent the destruction of evidence in the shooting death of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident killed by a Border Patrol agent during an immigration enforcement operation. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Pretti approached Border Patrol agents armed with a 9 mm pistol and “violently resisted” when they attempted to disarm him. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, names DHS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) and U.S. Border Control, as well as Attorney General Pam Bondi, as defendants. TRUMP CITES ARMED SUSPECT, LACK OF POLICE SUPPORT FOLLOWING FATAL BORDER PATROL SHOOTING IN MINNEAPOLIS The groups, represented by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office, said the litigation is accompanied by a motion for a temporary restraining order that asks the court to immediately prevent the defendants from destroying any evidence related to the shooting. In granting the temporary injunction, Judge Eric Tostrud wrote that federal officials and those acting on their behalf cannot destroy evidence taken from the scene of the south Minneapolis shooting or now in their exclusive custody, which state authorities say they were previously barred from inspecting. Tostrud scheduled a hearing Monday to review the order. “As I said earlier today, I will not rest, my team will not rest, until we have done everything in our power, everything within our authority, to achieve transparency and accountability,” Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement. “Our office has jurisdiction to review this matter for potential criminal conduct by the federal agents involved and we will do so.” Moriarty added that the lawsuit is just one of the actions her office is taking “to ensure that a thorough and transparent investigation can be completed at the state level.” READ IT: BONDI SENDS WARNING LETTER TO GOV WALZ WARNING MINNESOTA’S IMMIGRATION POLICIES ENDANGER AGENTS In announcing the litigation, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison asserted that “federal agents are not above the law and Alex Pretti is certainly not beneath it.” “A full, impartial, and transparent investigation into his fatal shooting at the hands of DHS agents is non-negotiable,” he said in a statement. “Minnesota law enforcement is currently carrying out such an investigation, and it is essential that the evidence collected by federal agents is preserved and turned over to state officials. Today’s lawsuit aims to bar the federal government from destroying or tampering with any of the evidence they have collected.” Ellison added that “justice will be done.” Fox News Digital reached out to the White House, the Department of Homeland Security and the Justice Department for comment. In a separate statement, Ellison said he shares “intense grief and anger” that Pretti was shot and killed during the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge. APPEALS COURT HANDS TRUMP ADMIN ‘VICTORY’ IN MINNESOTA ICE FORCE RESTRICTIONS CASE He said his office will argue in court Monday to end “this illegal and unconstitutional occupation of our cities and the terror and violence it’s inflicting.” The Department of Homeland Security said it is leading the investigation into the shooting. Pretti was a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs ICU nurse. Though medics immediately delivered aid, Pretti was pronounced dead at the scene. Fox News Digital’s Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.