US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he has instructed the Department of Homeland Security not to get involved in protests in Democratic-led cities unless local authorities request federal assistance or federal property is under threat.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said cities must protect their own state and local property. “Under no circumstances are we going to participate unless, and until, they ask us for help,” he wrote. He added that ICE and Border Patrol personnel would continue to guard federal buildings and would do so “very powerfully”.
The statement came a day after thousands of people protested in Minneapolis and other US cities, calling for federal immigration agencies to leave Minnesota. The protests followed the fatal shootings of two US citizens and the deployment of around 3,000 federal officers to the Minneapolis area as part of a crackdown on illegal immigration.
Trump also said federal forces would not tolerate attacks on officers or government property. “We will not allow our courthouses, federal buildings, or anything else under our protection, to be damaged,” he wrote, warning of “equal, or more, consequence” for violence.
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