US anti-immigrant crackdowns
Listen to article
Anti-immigrant protests and crackdowns in the US have seen a significant uptick recently, as the country reels from an aggressive new wave of immigration enforcement. What began as isolated demonstrations in Los Angeles following sweeping ICE raids has rapidly morphed into a nationwide outcry, with protests erupting in at least 35 cities.
Organisers have called the raids unconstitutional and dehumanising — and with over 1,800 protests expected this weekend, the unrest is a clear signal that millions of Americans refuse to stay silent as their country drifts further into the grip of far-right authoritarianism.
At the centre of this crisis is President Donald Trump whose return to power has emboldened a hardline approach to immigration that blurs the line between civil enforcement and military intervention. In a controversial move, Trump has authorised the deployment of US Marines to assist ICE operations. While the Pentagon insists that the Marines are only providing logistical support, the symbolism being drawn is that immigrants are a national security threat.
This escalation does not exist in a vacuum. It comes amid a broader global shift toward anti-immigrant sentiment, stoked further by the ongoing Israel-Palestine war. As images of displacement and violence flood global media, political leaders in the West are increasingly positioning migrants — especially those from Muslim-majority countries — as potential threats to justify harsher border controls and mass deportations.
Trump's policies also reflect this dangerous ideology. His playbook is built on division, targeting the vulnerable to rally a loyal, nationalist base. In doing so, he is redefining the American identity in exclusionary terms.
However, the surge in protests shows that many Americans see through the fear-mongering. They understand that what's at stake is far greater than immigration policy. If the US normalises military-backed crackdowns on migrants, it will send a dangerous message to other democracies already leaning toward authoritarianism.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
21 minutes ago
- Express Tribune
'We knew everything,' Trump says about Israel's strikes on Iran
US President Donald Trump speaks during a swearing-in ceremony for the new US ambassador to China, former US Senator David Perdue, at the White House in Washington, DC, US on May 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS Listen to article President Donald Trump told Reuters in a phone interview on Friday that he and his team knew everything about Israel's plan to attack Iran and that he had given Tehran fair warning it needed to make a deal on its nuclear program. "We knew everything, and I tried to save Iran humiliation and death. I tried to save them very hard because I would have loved to have seen a deal worked out," Trump said. "They can still work out a deal, however, it's not too late," he added. Trump had repeatedly pushed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to delay an Israeli attack to give diplomacy more time, though the president himself had threatened to bomb the Gulf nation if nuclear talks failed. Trump said he had given the Iranians 60 days to come to an agreement, "and today is 61." Iran has balked at the US insistence that it give up uranium enrichment. "We knew just about everything," he said. "We knew enough that we gave Iran 60 days to make a deal and today is 61, right? So, you know, we knew everything.' Trump said it was unclear if Iran still has a nuclear program following Israeli strikes on the country. "Nobody knows. It was a very devastating hit," Trump said. Israel said it had targeted Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders at the start of what it warned would be a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon. Trump said the US still has nuclear talks planned with Iran on Sunday but that he was unsure they would take place. He said it was not too late for Iran to make a deal. US special envoy Steve Witkoff is scheduled to meet an Iranian delegation in Oman on Sunday, but the Israeli attacks have raised doubts on whether the session will still take place. "They're not dead," Trump said of the US-Iran talks. "We have a meeting with them on Sunday. Now, I'm not sure if that meeting will take place, but we have a meeting with them on Sunday." The president had convened his top national security advisers at Camp David on Sunday night for what he said were discussions that included Iran, and he spoke to Netanyahu on Monday about Iran. He said he was not concerned about a regional war breaking out as a result of Israel's strikes but did not elaborate. Asked if the US would support Israel against Iranian counterattacks, Trump said he supports Israel. 'We've been very close to Israel," he said. "We're their number one ally by far." "We'll see what happens," he said.
Business Recorder
an hour ago
- Business Recorder
Iran fires missiles at Israel in response to attacks
JERUSALEM: Explosions were heard over Tel Aviv and Jerusalem as sirens sounded on Friday night across Israel following what the country's military spokesman said was the firing of missiles from Iran. Iran's state news agency IRNA said hundreds of ballistic missiles had been launched in retaliation for Israel's biggest ever attacks on Iran, blasting Iran's huge underground nuclear site at Natanz and wiping out its top military commanders. There were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries. Israel said the strikes were the start of 'Operation Rising Lion'. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Israel of having started the strikes and initiating a war. U.S. President Donald Trump said it was not too late for Tehran to halt the bombing campaign by reaching a deal on its nuclear programme. As evening fell on Friday, Iranian media reported explosions on the northern and southern outskirts of Tehran and at Fordow, near the holy city of Qom, a second nuclear site which had been spared in the first wave of attacks. Air defences were activated across Tehran and explosions could be heard in Isfahan. Israel's military said it was striking Iranian missile and drone launching sites, and had struck another nuclear site in Isfahan. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Israeli campaign was aimed at defeating an existential threat from Iran, invoking the failure to halt the Holocaust in World War Two. Israel hits Iran nuclear and missile facilities, appears to block retaliation Israel's operation 'will continue for as many days as it takes to remove this threat,' he said in a TV address. 'Generations from now, history will record our generation stood its ground, acted in time and secured our common future.' In a phone interview with Reuters, Trump said it was not clear if Iran's nuclear programme had survived. He said nuclear talks between Tehran and the United States, scheduled for Sunday, were still on the agenda though he was not sure if they would take place. 'We knew everything,' Trump said of the Israeli attack plans. 'I tried to save Iran humiliation and death. I tried to save them very hard because I would have loved to have seen a deal worked out,' Trump said. 'They can still work out a deal, however, it's not too late.' Earlier, Trump posted on Truth Social: 'Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left.' Israel's National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said military action by itself would not destroy Iran's nuclear programme, but could 'create the conditions for a long-term deal, led by the United States' to get rid of it. Decapitation Two regional sources said at least 20 Iranian military commanders were killed, a stunning decapitation reminiscent of Israeli attacks that swiftly wiped out the leadership of Lebanon's once-feared Hezbollah militia last year. Iran also said six of its top nuclear scientists had been killed. Among the generals killed on Friday were the armed forces chief of staff, Major General Mohammad Bagheri, and the Revolutionary Guards chief, Hossein Salami. Major General Mohammad Pakpour, swiftly promoted to replace Salami as Guards commander, vowed retaliation in a letter to the Supreme Leader read out on state television: 'The gates of hell will open to the child-killing regime.' Iranians described an atmosphere of fear and anger, with some people rushing to change money and others seeking a way out of the country to safety. Israel says it strikes Iran amid nuclear tensions 'People on my street rushed out of their homes in panic, we were all terrified,' said Marziyeh, 39, who was awakened by a blast in Natanz. While some Iranians quietly hoped the attack would lead to changes in Iran's hardline clerical leadership, others vowed to rally behind the authorities. 'I will fight and die for our right to a nuclear programme. Israel and its ally America cannot take it away from us with these attacks,' said Ali, a member of the pro-government Basij militia in Qom. Iranian media showed images of destroyed apartment blocks, and said nearly 80 civilians were killed in attacks that targeted nuclear scientists in their beds and wounded more than 300 people. Iran's ability to retaliate with weapons fired by its regional proxies has been sharply degraded over the past year, with the downfall of its ally Bashar al-Assad in Syria and the decimation of Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Israel said a missile fired from Yemen - whose Houthi militia are one of the last remaining Iranian-aligned groups still able to fire at Israel - had landed in Hebron in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Red Crescent said three Palestinian children were wounded by shrapnel there. 'Cowardly' Israel said that Iran had launched around 100 drones towards Israeli territory on Friday, but Iran denied this and there were no reports of drones reaching Israeli targets. The United Nations Security Council was due to meet on Friday at Tehran's request. Iran said in a letter to the Council that it would respond decisively and proportionally to Israel's 'unlawful' and 'cowardly' acts. The price of crude leapt on fears of wider retaliatory attacks across a major oil-producing region, although there were no reports that oil production or storage was damaged. OPEC said the escalation did not justify any immediate changes to oil supply. An Israeli security source said Mossad commandos had been operating deep inside the Islamic Republic before the attack, and the Israeli spy agency and military had mounted a series of covert operations against Iran's strategic missile array. Israel also established an attack-drone base near Tehran, the source added. The military said it had bombarded Iran's air defences, destroying 'dozens of radars and surface-to-air missile launchers'. Israeli officials said it may be some time before the extent of damage to the underground nuclear site at Natanz is clear, where Iran has refined uranium to levels Western countries have long said are suitable for a bomb rather than civilian use. Iran has long insisted its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes only. The U.N. nuclear watchdog concluded this week that it was in violation of its obligations under the global non-proliferation treaty. Tehran had been engaged in talks with the Trump administration on a deal to curb its nuclear programme to replace one that Trump abandoned in 2018. Tehran had rejected the last U.S. offer.
Business Recorder
3 hours ago
- Business Recorder
Oil jumps over 7% after Israel strikes Iran
HOUSTON: Oil prices jumped over 7% on Friday to multi-month highs after Israel launched air strikes against Iran, sparking Iranian retaliation and raising worries about a disruption in Middle East oil supplies. Brent crude futures were up $4.94, or 7.12%, to $74.30 a barrel at 1442 GMT, after hitting an intraday high of $78.50, the strongest level since January 27. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up $4.72, or 6.94%, at $72.75, touching its highest since January 21 at $77.62 earlier in the session. Friday's gains were the largest intraday moves for both contracts since 2022, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine caused a spike in energy prices. Israel said it had targeted Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders on Friday at the start of what it warned would be a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon. Iran has promised a harsh response. U.S. President Donald Trump urged Iran to make a deal over its nuclear programme, to put an end to the 'next already planned attacks.' The National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company said oil refining and storage facilities had not been damaged and continued to operate. Oil prices drop as traders gauge ME tensions The primary concern was whether the latest developments would affect the Strait of Hormuz, said Nikos Tzabouras, senior market analyst at 'Sustained upside would require actual disruptions to physical flows - such as damage to Iran's oil infrastructure or a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a key global chokepoint,' Tzabouras said in a note on Friday morning. About a fifth of the world's total oil consumption passes through the strait, or some 18 to 19 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil, condensate and fuel. So far, no impact to oil flow in the region has been seen, Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen said. 'No energy installations have been impacted by the Israeli strikes, so unless Iran decides to drag other nations, especially the U.S. into the conflict, the risk of a supply disruption remains low and should over time reduce the risk premium,' Hansen said. Iran could pay a heavy price for blockage of the Strait of Hormuz, which it and its neighbors rely on to ship oil to Asian markets, analysts said on Friday. 'Iran's economy heavily relies on the free passage of goods and vessels through the seaway, as its oil exports are entirely sea-based. Finally, cutting off the Strait of Hormuz would be counterproductive to Iran's relationship with its sole oil customer, China, said Natasha Kaneva, Prateek Kedia, Lyuba Savinova, analysts with JP Morgan. In other markets, stocks dived and there was a rush to safe havens such as gold and the U.S. dollar and Swiss franc.
