Trump Targets Minnesota’s Somali Community as ICE Prepares Enforcement Operation

US President Donald Trump has sharply criticised Somali immigrants, stating he does not want them in the United States, amid reports that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is planning a targeted operation in Minnesota’s large Somali community.

Speaking during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Trump said: “I don’t want them in our country, I’ll be honest with you… Some of these people should go back to where they came from. Their country is no good for a reason.” He also described Somalia as “barely a country” and claimed its citizens “just run around killing each other.”

Trump’s remarks follow his administration’s announcement last month to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali residents in Minnesota, a program in place since 1991 that shields immigrants from deportation due to conflict in their home country. Officials estimate that only a few hundred people would be directly affected by the TPS termination.

The reported ICE operation has provoked strong condemnation from local leaders. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey warned that such an operation “means due process will be violated,” while Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said indiscriminate targeting of immigrants is “not a real solution to a problem.” State Senator Zaynab Mohamed highlighted that most Somali residents in Minnesota are American citizens.

Minneapolis and St Paul, collectively known as the Twin Cities, host the largest Somali community in the US, numbering around 80,000. Concerns have been raised that ICE’s operation could mistakenly target citizens who appear to be Somali.

Trump also used the occasion to criticise Representative Ilhan Omar, the first Somali-American elected to Congress. “I always watch her… she hates everybody. And I think she’s an incompetent person,” he said. Omar responded on social media, calling Trump’s comments “creepy” and saying he “desperately needs help.”

The Trump administration has framed the operation as part of a wider crackdown on immigration following security incidents, though officials deny that race or ethnicity determines targets. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin emphasised that enforcement focuses solely on individuals in the country illegally.

Somalia’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Ali Omar, condemned the narrative against Somali migrants, tweeting that the country should not be used “as a scapegoat or distraction from [others’] failures.”