Mayor asks 'how many more Americans need to die' in ICE operation after nurse shot dead in Minneapolis

Jacob Frey spoke to reporters after a 37-year-old man was shot dead during anti-ICE protests on Saturday morning local time.

He was later named locally as Alex Pretti, as reported by The Minnesota Star Tribune, who was a "white American white citizen" and a Minneapolis resident.

It is said that the man's only contact with police, to their knowledge, was related to parking tickets.

During a fiery press conference alongside police chief police chief Brian O'Hara, Frey asked: "How many more residents, how many more Americans need to die or get back badly hurt for this operation to end?

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"How many more lives need to be lost before this administration realises that a political and partisan narrative is not as important as American values?

"How many times must local and national leaders must plead with you, Donald Trump, to end this operation and recognise that, that this is not creating safety in our city."

Daily protests have taken place across the city since early January when Renee Nicole Good, 37, was shot dead by an ICE officer while behind the wheel of her car.

Mr Frey added: "We have seen these kinds of operations in other places, in other countries, but not here in America.

"Not in a way where a great American city is being invaded by its own federal government. I'm done being told that our community members are responsible for the vitriol in our streets.

"I'm done being told that our local elected officials are solely responsible for turning down the temperature."

The mayor said 15,000 protestors peacefully took to the streets on Friday in response to the increased presence of guards in Minnesota - where not a "single window was broken."

Questioning why the federal operation was still ongoing, he added: "They should be reflecting right now and asking themselves, what exactly are you accomplishing? If the goal was to achieve peace and safety, this is doing exactly the opposite.

"If the goal was to achieve calm and prosperity, this is doing exactly the opposite. Are you standing up for American families right now or are we tearing them apart?"

The country's Homeland Security said that agents were conducting a "targeted operation in Minneapolis against an illegal alien," just after 9am on Saturday when a man approached with a "9 mm semi-automatic handgun," pictured on social media.

They said an agent fired "defensive shots" after fearing for his, and the lives of his colleagues.

Responding to the shooting on his Truth Social platform, President Trump said: "This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about?

"Where are the local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers? The Mayor and the Governor called them off?

"It is stated that many of these Police were not allowed to do their job, that ICE had to protect themselves — Not an easy thing to do!"

He also referred to the "12,000 illegal alien criminals" who had been "taken out of Minnesota."