Protesters, immigration officials face off in LA
PARAMOUNT, California (AP) — Tear gas and smoke filled the air Saturday on the southern outskirts of Los Angeles as confrontations between immigration authorities and demonstrators extended into a second day.
President Trump warned that the federal government may 'step in and solve the problem.' Gov. Gavin Newsom said the federal government was 'moving to take over the California National Guard and deploy 2,000 soldiers' and warned it would only escalate tensions. Additional details were not immediately available.
'This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust,' Newsom said. deployment.
Local authorities 'are able to access law enforcement assistance at a moment's notice,' the governor also said, and 'there is currently no unmet need.'
On his Truth Social platform, Trump said: 'the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved' if Newsom and the Los Angeles mayor 'can't do their jobs, which everyone knows they can't.'
Border Patrol personnel in riot gear and gas masks stood guard outside an industrial park in the city of Paramount, deploying tear gas as bystanders and protesters gathered on medians and across the street. Some jeered at officers while recording the events on smartphones.
'ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are,' a woman said through a megaphone. 'You are not welcome here.' One handheld sign read, 'No Human Being is Illegal.' Smoke rose from burning shrubbery and refuse in the street, and demonstrators kicked at a Border Patrol vehicle. A boulevard was closed to traffic as Border Patrol agents circulated through a community where more than 80 percent of residents identify as Latino.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted a message on social media addressing 'LA rioters' and warning that interference with immigration enforcement will not be tolerated.
'You will not stop us or slow us down,' Noem said on X. Immigration and Customs Enforcement 'will enforce the law. And if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.'
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers executed search warrants at multiple locations Friday, including outside a clothing warehouse in the fashion district. The action came after a judge found probable cause that the employer was using fictitious documents for some of its workers, according to representatives for Homeland Security Investigations and the US Attorney's Office.
A tense scene unfolded outside as a crowd tried to block agents from driving away.
Advocates for immigrants' rights said there were also migration detentions outside Home Depot stores and a doughnut shop.
DHS said in a statement that recent ICE operations in Los Angeles resulted in the arrest of 118 immigrants, including five people linked to criminal organizations and people with prior criminal histories.
Following the Friday arrests, protesters gathered in the evening outside a federal detention center, chanting, 'Set them free, let them stay!' Some held signs with anti-ICE slogans, and some some scrawled graffiti on the building.
Among those arrested at the protests was David Huerta, regional president of the Service Employees International Union. Justice Department spokesperson Ciaran McEvoy confirmed that he was being held Saturday at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles ahead of a scheduled Monday court appearance.
It was not clear whether Huerta had legal representation.
Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called for his immediate release. In a social media post, he cited a 'disturbing pattern of arresting and detaining American citizens for exercising their right to free speech.' The immigration arrests come as President Donald Trump and his administration push to fulfill promises of mass deportations across the country.
Mayor Karen Bass said the activity was meant to 'sow terror' in the nation's second-largest city.
In a statement Saturday, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons chided Bass for the city's response to the protests.
'Mayor Bass took the side of chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement,' Lyons said. 'Make no mistake, ICE will continue to enforce our nation's immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
7 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Trump sends military force to Los Angeles over immigration protests
LOS ANGELES -- US President Donald Trump ordered National Guard troops to Los Angeles, a rare deployment expected Sunday against the state governor's wishes after sometimes-violent protests against immigration enforcement raids. Trump took federal control of California's state military to push soldiers into the country's second-biggest city, a decision deemed "purposefully inflammatory" by California Governor Gavin Newsom and of a kind not seen for decades according to US media. The development came after two days of confrontations during which federal agents fired flash-bang grenades and tear gas toward crowds angry at the arrests of dozens of migrants in a city with a large Latino population. "It's up to us to stand up for our people," said a Los Angeles resident whose parents are immigrants, declining to give her name. "Whether we get hurt, whether they gas us, whatever they're throwing at us. They're never going to stop us. All we have left is our voice," she told Agence France-Presse as emergency services lights flashed in the distance. An AFP photographer saw fires and fireworks light up the streets during clashes, while a protester holding a Mexican flag stood in front of a burnt-out car that had been sprayed with a slogan against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. "President Trump has signed a Presidential Memorandum deploying 2,000 National Guardsmen to address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester," White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, blaming what she called California's "feckless" Democratic leaders. "The Trump Administration has a zero tolerance policy for criminal behavior and violence, especially when that violence is aimed at law enforcement officers trying to do their jobs." Trump congratulated the National Guard for "a job well done" shortly before midnight on Saturday in a post on Truth Social. However, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said on social media platform X the troops had not yet been deployed, while AFP journalists have so far not seen them on the ground. Trump took a swipe at Bass and Newsom, saying in his post they were "unable to handle the task," drawing a comparison with deadly fires that hit the city in January. 'Purposefully inflammatory' The National Guard -- a reserve military -- is frequently used in natural disasters, such as in the aftermath of the LA fires, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local politicians. California's governor objected to the president's decision, saying it was "purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions." Federal authorities "want a spectacle. Don't give them one. Never use violence. Speak out peacefully," Newsom said on X. Trump's Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth threatened to involve nearby regular military forces. "If violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized -- they are on high alert," he wrote on social media. Law professor Jessica Levinson said Hegseth's intervention appeared symbolic because of the general legal restriction on the use of the US military as a domestic policing force in the absence of an insurrection. "The National Guard will be able to do (no) more than provide logistical (and) personnel support," she said. Trump has delivered on a promise to crack down hard on the entry and presence of undocumented migrants -- who he has likened to "monsters" and "animals" -- since taking office in January. The Department for Homeland Security said ICE operations in Los Angeles this week had resulted in the arrest of "118 aliens, including five gang members." Saturday's standoff took place in the suburb of Paramount, where demonstrators converged on a reported federal facility that the local mayor said was being used as a staging post by agents. Masked and armed immigration agents carried out high-profile workplace raids in separate parts of Los Angeles on Friday, attracting angry crowds and setting off hours-long standoffs. Fernando Delgado, a 24-year-old resident, said the raids were "injustices" and those detained were "human beings just like any." "We're Spanish, we help the community, we help by doing the labor that people don't want to do," he told AFP. Mayor Bass acknowledged that some city residents were "feeling fear" following the federal immigration enforcement actions. "Everyone has the right to peacefully protest, but let me be clear: violence and destruction are unacceptable, and those responsible will be held accountable," she said on X. FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said multiple arrests had been made following Friday's clashes.
Korea Herald
8 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Trump's travel ban on 12 countries goes into effect early Monday
WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump's order banning citizens of 12 countries from entering the United States goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. EST on Monday, a move the president promulgated to protect the country from "foreign terrorists." The countries affected by the latest travel ban are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The entry of people from seven other countries -- Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela - will be partially restricted. Trump, a Republican, said the countries subject to the most severe restrictions were determined to harbor a "large-scale presence of terrorists," fail to cooperate on visa security, have an inability to verify travelers' identities, as well as inadequate record-keeping of criminal histories and high rates of visa overstays in the United States. He cited last Sunday's incident in Boulder, Colorado, in which an Egyptian national tossed a gasoline bomb into a crowd of pro-Israel demonstrators as an example of why the new curbs are needed. But Egypt is not part of the travel ban. The travel ban forms part of Trump's policy to restrict immigration into the United States and is reminiscent of a similar move in his first term when he barred travelers from seven Muslim-majority nations. Officials and residents in countries whose citizens will soon be banned expressed dismay and disbelief. Chad President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno said he had instructed his government to stop granting visas to US citizens in response to Trump's action. "Chad has neither planes to offer nor billions of dollars to give, but Chad has its dignity and its pride," he said in a Facebook post, referring to countries such as Qatar, which gifted the US a luxury airplane for Trump's use and promised to invest billions of dollars in the US. Afghans who worked for the US or US-funded projects and were hoping to resettle in the US expressed fear that the travel ban would force them to return to their country, where they could face reprisal from the Taliban. Democratic US lawmakers also voiced concern about the policies. "Trump's travel ban on citizens from over 12 countries is draconian and unconstitutional," said US Representative Ro Khanna on social media late on Thursday. "People have a right to seek asylum." (Reuters)
Korea Herald
13 hours ago
- Korea Herald
LA's Korean American community on edge amid immigration raids, protests
No Korean nationals, Korean Americans confirmed among detainees as yet: reports US federal immigration authorities conducted a series of coordinated enforcement operations across Los Angeles on Friday, including in neighborhoods with a high concentration of Korean American-owned businesses. The move has raised concerns within the local Korean diaspora. The raids reportedly targeted areas in downtown Los Angeles' fashion district, commonly referred to as the 'Jobber Market,' where several Korean American-run wholesale clothing stores are located. In a statement released the same day, the Korean American Federation of Los Angeles condemned the enforcement actions, describing them as 'unilateral and heavy-handed.' 'These actions by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) disregard proper legal procedures,' the organization said. 'We urgently call on our local elected officials to take action and provide solutions to this crisis. In addition, we will work closely with local organizations to ensure that no individuals are unjustly harmed.' 'Even individuals who struggle with English or are unable to provide identification immediately are reportedly being arrested or detained first,' the organization added. 'This has caused significant harm and confusion, not only among Korean nationals but also among local residents.' The KAFLA, founded in 1962, is a nonprofit organization that serves the Korean American community of Los Angeles. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, a democrat representing California's 37th congressional district, which includes a significant Korean American population, said she was monitoring the situation closely. She specifically pointed to Korean American-owned businesses in her district. 'I am closely monitoring the ICE raids that are currently happening across Los Angeles, including at a Korean American-owned store in my district,' she wrote on social platform X. According to The Associated Press, immigration authorities arrested 44 individuals during the operation. However, as of Friday evening, the Korean Consulate General in Los Angeles said no Korean nationals or Korean Americans had been confirmed among those detained.
