Ilhan Omar attacked with unidentified substance at town hall in Minneapolis
Shrai Popat
At her first town hall of the year in Minneapolis, congresswoman Ilhan Omar was sprayed with an unidentified substance while making her opening remarks. Omar had just started speaking when a man sprayed her from the front row of the community center where the event is taking place in the north of the city.
The man was swiftly tackled to the ground by security, but Omar insisted on continuing the town hall despite the incident – refusing to let it stop her addressing constituents. The attacker, who did not identify a particular political affiliation when he sprayed Omar, was quickly escorted out of the room, as the crowd applauded his removal.
“I learned at a young age that you don’t give into threats,” Omar said.
Key events
Closing summary
We’re wrapping up our live coverage for today. We’ll be back on Wednesday with more. Here is a summary of the day’s developments:
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Ilhan Omar was attacked at a town hall event in Minneapolis on Tuesday evening. She was speaking about abolishing ICE when a man lunged toward her with a syringe and sprayed the congressman with an unknown substance before security tackled him to the ground. Officers witnessed the attack and arrested him for third-degree assault. Forensic scientists are evaluating the scene.
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Pressure continues to mount for Kristi Noem to resign. Republican senators Lisa Murkowski and Thom Tillis on Tuesday said she should leave her post as the Department of Homeland Security secretary. More than 75% of House Democrats support her impeachment and top Democrats have said Trump should fire her, or they will move with proceedings.
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Donald Trump said his administration plans to “de-escalate” in Minnesota after weeks of a massive, and deadly, immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis-St Paul. His comments came after Tom Homan, Trump’s border czar, sat down with Governor Tim Walz, Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey and law enforcement in the state on Tuesday. Both Homan and Frey described the meeting as “productive”.
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Republican Senator Susan Collins asked Kristi Noem to pause immigration operations in her home state of Maine as well as Minnesota, and called for an investigation into the shooting death of Alex Pretti.
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A Customs and Border Protection official told Congress that two federal officers fired their weapons in the encounter in Minneapolis that killed Pretti, an American citizen and ICU nurse.
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A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that a five-year-old Minnesota boy and his father cannot be immediately deported, one week after their arrest sparked international outrage.
Shrai Popat
At the Minnesota State Capitol on Tuesday, school superintendents, teachers and parents described how the federal immigration surge is reshaping classrooms across the state. “These actions have changed the very fabric of our Columbia Heights schools and made every student, teacher and parent less safe,” said Peg Nelson, an elementary teacher in the district where five‑year‑old Liam Conejo Ramos was detained. “Students are afraid to come to school. We haven’t seen absenteeism like this since Covid.”
In nearby Fridley, superintendent Brenda Lewis said families are so worried about being picked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that she has twice cancelled in‑person classes since the start of the year and created a remote option for those afraid to leave home. She added that requests for door‑to‑door transportation have surged because parents don’t want their children waiting at bus stops where they fear federal agents could appear.
As families hesitate to send children to school, lawmakers said they’ve worked with the governor’s office to give districts more flexibility in applying a state rule requiring schools to drop students after 15 days of absences.
For Mary Granlund, chair of the Columbia Heights school board, Ramos is not the only child in her district that’s been taken into custody. In recent weeks, another preschooler and two high‑school students were also detained. Only one of the four has returned home, while Ramos remains in a Texas detention facility.
“Today, people across Columbia Heights woke up to cars still running, doors open, empty, left in the street,” Granlund said, noting that another student was reportedly pulled over by ICE and released only because they had their passport. She added that on Tuesday morning she opened her front door to find two unmarked vehicles parked outside; local police later confirmed they belonged to ICE.
“This message is to remind people that this is not over. It’s still happening, and we need your help to bring our kids home and make our families and communities whole again,” she said.
The US Capitol Police issued a statement in response to the attack on Ilhan Omar, calling it an “unacceptable decision that will be met with swift justice”.
“We are grateful for the rapid response of onsite security and our local law enforcement partners. We are now working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society,” the agency said.
Threats against members of Congress have been on the rise for years, and Omar has received more than any other member.
The US Capitol police investigated nearly 9,500 concerning statements and direct threats against members of Congress, as well as their families and staff, in 2024, more than double the number seen in 2017.
Omar has had the highest level of death threats, something she has attributed to Donald Trump’s frequent attacks on her.
“Now, in the four years when [Joe] Biden was president, my death threats went to almost zero,” she told the Guardian last month. “Now they are back up and so there is a clear correlation between his presidency and the political violence that we see and the political danger that a lot of members of Congress and electeds feel across the country.”
Hours before she was assaulted on Tuesday, Donald Trump yet again spoke of Omar at a rally in Iowa. “She comes from a country that’s a disaster. It’s not even a country,” he said. In December, he referred to her as “garbage”.
The man who attacked Ilhan Omar has been arrested, the Minneapolis police department confirmed to media on Tuesday.
Officers saw a man use a syringe to douse liquid on the congressman and immediately arrested him, spokesperson Trevor Folke told the Associated Press in an email. The suspect was booked at the county jail for third-degree assault. Meanwhile, forensic scientists responded to the scene, police said.
In a statement published online on Tuesday evening, Omar said she was OK.
“I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work. I don’t let bullies win. Grateful to my incredible constituents who rallied behind me. Minnesota strong.”
The attack on Ilhan Omar has drawn condemnation from elected officials.
“Unacceptable. Violence and intimidation have no place in Minneapolis. We can disagree without putting people at risk,” Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey said, writing that such behavior “will not be tolerated in our city”.
Nancy Mace, a Republican congresswoman from South Carolina, said she was “deeply disturbed” by the assault.
“Regardless of how vehemently I disagree with her rhetoric — and I do — no elected official should face physical attacks. This is not who we are,” she said.
In the moments before she was attacked during a town hall in Minneapolis, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar was calling to abolish US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
“ICE cannot be reformed. It cannot be rehabilitated. We must abolish ICE for good. And DHS secretary Kristi Noem must resign or face impeachment,” Omar said, moments before a man lunged toward her, spraying an unknown substance with a syringe before security tackled him to the ground.
In video footage of the incident, individuals seated behind Omar urged her to get check out before continuing, but she refused to stop, saying “please don’t let them have the show”.
“Here’s the reality that people like this ugly man don’t understand; we are Minnesota strong and we will stay resilient in the face of whatever they might throw at us,” Omar said.
She told reporters as she departed: “I’ve survived war. And I’m definitely going to survive intimidation and whatever these people think they can throw at me because I’m built that way.”
Ilhan Omar attacked with unidentified substance at town hall in Minneapolis
Shrai Popat
At her first town hall of the year in Minneapolis, congresswoman Ilhan Omar was sprayed with an unidentified substance while making her opening remarks. Omar had just started speaking when a man sprayed her from the front row of the community center where the event is taking place in the north of the city.
The man was swiftly tackled to the ground by security, but Omar insisted on continuing the town hall despite the incident – refusing to let it stop her addressing constituents. The attacker, who did not identify a particular political affiliation when he sprayed Omar, was quickly escorted out of the room, as the crowd applauded his removal.
“I learned at a young age that you don’t give into threats,” Omar said.
Republican Senator Susan Collins said she has asked Kristi Noem to pause immigration operations in her home state of Maine as well as Minnesota, and called for an investigation into the shooting death of Alex Pretti.
“I believe they should be reviewed and far more targeted in their scope,” Collins said in a statement posted on social media. “At this time of heightened tensions, these steps are necessary to help improve trust, accountability, and safety.”
The senator told Maine Public Radio that she’s received calls from constituents fearful and angry over the campaign in her state, which has affected residents who are in the US legally. The White House’s recent changes, such as the decision to send Tom Homan to Minnesota, made Collins hopeful, the outlet reported.
Homan, Trump’s border czar, sat down with Governor Tim Walz, Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey and law enforcement in the state on Tuesday, a meeting both Homan and Frey described as “productive”.
“We all agree that we need to support our law enforcement officers and get criminals off the streets. While we don’t agree on everything, these meetings were a productive starting point and I look forward to more conversations with key stakeholders in the days ahead,” Homan said.
Both Frey and Walz have asked that Operation Metro Surge end as soon as possible.
Lauren Gambino
Speaking on the Senate floor earlier today, the Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, said Noem was “vicious” and a “liar” and must be fired in the wake of two fatal shootings in Minnesota.
“Donald Trump must fire her at once before another American is killed under her watch,” Schumer said.
Schumer’s caucus is facing a major decision as they prepare to vote against DHS funding, which is presently tied to a broader government funding package. To avert a partial shutdown, Republicans must persuade 10 Democrats to support the bill. But support for the measure, which appeared on track to pass last week, collapsed after Pretti’s killing, with nearly all Senate Democrats refusing to lend their votes without significant guardrails being placed on DHS.
Democrats have asked the Senate majority leader, John Thune, to strip DHS funding from the package and allow a vote to proceed with bipartisan support on funding the other departments, including, among others, defense, transportation and housing.
“The ball is in Leader Thune’s court,” Schumer said.
Thune has indicated that he is unlikely to split the package, and called on Democrats to clearly state their demands.
“Productive talks are ongoing, and I urge my Democrat colleagues to continue their engagement and find a path forward that will avoid a needless shutdown and not jeopardize full funding for key agencies like FEMA and the Coast Guard,” Thune said earlier.
The Republican senators Lisa Murkowski and Thom Tillis on Tuesday said Kristi Noem should resign from her post as the Department of Homeland Security secretary.
The senators are the first Republicans in Congress to do so, and their comments come as top House Democrats told Donald Trump to fire Noem or they would launch impeachment proceedings against her. More than 75% of House Democrats support efforts to impeach Noem, a number that has grown in recent days following the killing of Alex Pretti.
Tillis told reporters on Capitol Hill that he did not have confidence in Noem, NBC News reported. “I think she should go,” he said, describing some of her actions as “unacceptable” and “amateurish”.
Murkowski also told the outlet that Noem should go.
Two federal officers fired shots during encounter that killed Alex Pretti, DHS tells Congress
A Customs and Border Protection official told Congress that two federal officers fired their weapons in the encounter in Minneapolis that killed Alex Pretti, an American citizen and ICU nurse.
The Associated Press reports that a communication sent to Congress, and obtained by the news outlet, states that a border patrol officer fired his Glock and a CBP officer fired his. The agency is required to send such notifications to Congress.
According to the notification, investigators with CBP’s Office of Professional Responsibility reviewed body-worn camera footage and agency documentation. An official alleged that Pretti resisted officers as they tried to take him into custody, and that amid a struggle a border patrol agent yelled “he’s got a gun” several times.
The killing, which was captured on camera, has sparked outrage and protests, particularly as Trump administration officials have sought to paint Pretti as a “would-be assassin” who was acting violently. Video of the incident directly contradicts that characterization of the shooting, and shows Pretti holding a phone when he was swarmed by federal agents, taken to the ground, and shot.
As the administration faces growing pressure over the incident, Donald Trump, who said Pretti should not have been carrying a gun, said on Tuesday: “I want to see the investigation. I’m going to be watching over it, and I want a very honorable and honest investigation. I have to see it myself.”
More than 75% of House Democrats support the impeachment of homeland security secretary Kristi Noem.
The office of Robin Kelly, an Illinois congresswoman who introduced the articles of impeachment, reported that 162 of the 213 House Democrats had signed on as co-sponsors by Tuesday.
Noem has faced growing criticism in recent days following the killing of Alex Pretti, a US citizen killed in the street by federal immigration agents. The secretary has claimed Pretti was “brandishing” a weapon, and acting “violently” toward officers, a characterization contradicted by video footage of the incident.
Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, and other top Democrats have urged Donald Trump to fire Noem otherwise they will seek her impeachment.
“The violence unleashed on the American people by the Department of Homeland Security must end forthwith. Kristi Noem should be fired immediately, or we will commence impeachment proceedings in the House of Representatives,” Jeffries said in a joint statement, along with his two deputies, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar.
Trump said today that Noem has “done a very good job”.
Federal judge blocks deportation of five-year-old Minnesota boy and his father
Sam Levin
A federal judge ruled on Tuesday that a five-year-old Minnesota boy and his father cannot be immediately deported, one week after their arrest sparked international outrage.
A Texas-based judge issued an order saying Liam Ramos, the preschooler, and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, cannot be removed or transferred out of the judicial district where they are being held while the litigation challenging their detention proceeds.
Liam’s arrest seven days prior went viral and became a symbol of the Trump administration’s relentless crackdown on immigrant communities in the Minneapolis region. Attorneys for the family have said the father and son have an active asylum case and had entered the US at an authorized port of entry.
Donald Trump said his administration plans to “de-escalate” in Minnesota after weeks of a massive, and deadly, immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis-St Paul.
In an interview with Fox News on Tuesday, the US president defended his administration’s campaign in the state, stating that ICE had taken “thousands of criminals out of Minnesota”. The operation and the killings of two US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, by federal agents has drawn fierce condemnation and major protests.
Trump said border czar Tom Homan met with Minnesota governor Tim Walz and Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey on Tuesday, and that “we’re gonna de-escalate a little bit”.
Congressman Joaquin Castro is set to meet with Liam Ramos, the preschooler who was detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Minnesota, and his father at a Texas detention center.
The Texas lawmaker said that he planned to visit Dilley Detention Center alongside Representative Jasmine Crockett on Wednesday.
Federal agents took the father and son, who have an active asylum case, into custody last week as the five-year-old returned home from school. Images of the child in a blue hat and an agent gripping the Spiderman backpack he carried sparked widespread outrage.
“He has become emblematic of the monstrosity of the ICE system and the detention system,” Castro said in a video shared on social media. “But the truth is Liam will be one of many kids … who are there in Dilley at that detention center.”
While speaking to diners in Iowa, Trump was asked if the US is now a defacto member of OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) vis a vis Trump “running” Venezuela.
Trump didn’t answer directly: “We are a very strong presence in Venezuela. We’re going to get a lot of money for Venezuela. Venezuela has the largest oil reserves in the world … And we are working beautifully with Venezuela.”
After the US capture of Nicolás Maduro, Trump said Venezuela “going to do better now than they ever did that they’ve done ever had any point, and we’re going to be making a lot of money for them and a lot of money for our country.”
He was then asked what this means for Cuba. Looking around at the diners in Iowa, Trump asked: “Anybody interested in Cuba? Not too many.” He then quipped that there were many people who cared about the island’s fate in Miami.
“Cuba will be failing pretty soon,” he continued. “Cuba is really a nation that is very close to failing.”
Trump says Alex Pretti ‘shouldn’t have been carrying a gun’ and claims ignorance of his team’s false claims about slain VA nurse
Answering reporter questions in the restaurant, Trump once again declined to agree with characterizations by his own team of Pretti as a domestic terrorist, claiming not to have heard those comments.
“He shouldn’t have been carrying a gun,” Trump said, adding “I don’t like that he had a gun.” Minneapolis Police has said Pretti was a lawful gun owner with a valid permit to carry a firearm. The assertion that he should not have carried a gun has drawn significant pushback from pro-second amendment groups, including the NRA, which are usually in lockstep with Republicans on matters of gun rights.
Even then, he said you’d have to be a “stupid person” not to think what happened to Pretti was “very unfortunate”.
Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff and the architect of Trump’s immigration agenda, described Pretti as a “would-be assassin” and a “domestic terrorist” who “tried to murder federal law enforcement”.
Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem claimed Pretti was “brandishing” a weapon, acting “violently” toward officers, which is plainly contradicted by video footage showing that he was holding a phone, not a gun, and was disarmed before he was killed.
Gregory Bovino, who has since left his post as Border Patrol commander, claimed without any evidence that Pretti wanted to “massacre law enforcement” and that the agents were “the victims”.
