Operation Metro Surge ending; Hennepin sheriff keeps distance from ICE
Federal officials led by Border Czar Tom Homan announced the formal end of Operation Metro Surge, calling it a success while saying roughly 700 officers are being pulled but some 2,000 ICE/Border Patrol personnel will remain and heightened operations could continue, with Homan conditioning future drawdowns on officer safety. Local leaders, protesters and business owners — who say raids and two agent-involved homicides have strained communities and even turned Nicollet Avenue shops into ad hoc shelters — dismissed the move as insufficient, and Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt said her office made no new deals with ICE, will not honor detainers and warned the surge has eroded public trust.
đź“Ś Key Facts
- Border Czar Tom Homan publicly announced the official conclusion of Operation Metro Surge, called the operation a “success,” and defended his metrics (arrest totals and labeling some detainees as the “worst of the worst”) while minimizing court losses and habeas releases.
- Homan earlier ordered a partial drawdown — saying about 700 federal immigration officers would be withdrawn from Minnesota while roughly 2,000 ICE officers remained — and he tied any fuller withdrawal to the perceived “safety” of ICE officers from protesters.
- Homan said the surge’s "target list is reducing" as state prisons and county jails increasingly coordinate with ICE and Border Patrol (allowing more direct pickups), and he signaled that ICE and Border Patrol will maintain a heightened presence in Minnesota and could mount similar surges elsewhere.
- Local leaders and officials pressed alarm over the campaign: Mayor Jacob Frey linked Operation Metro Surge to two of Minneapolis’ three homicides this year (both involving ICE agents), and Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette said the continued presence of roughly 2,000 agents is driving fear and disrupting businesses, schools and daily life.
- In the immediate aftermath of a Minneapolis resident being killed by federal immigration agents, restaurants and shops along Nicollet Avenue’s Eat Street opened as ad hoc warming centers and medical triage sites; business owners say they are exhausted and uncertain how to operate under the threat of further violence and raids.
- Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt said her office has not entered any new agreements with the federal government or ICE, called the surge “unprecedented” and damaging to public trust, reiterated the county’s policy of not honoring ICE detainers, and the Hennepin County Board passed a resolution urging the sheriff not to make substantive changes that would increase voluntary cooperation with ICE and to notify the board and public of any such changes.
đź“Š Relevant Data
The share of ICE detainees with immigration violations but no criminal charges increased from 6 percent in October 2024 to 35 percent in September 2025.
A New Era of Immigration Enforcement Unfolds in the U.S. Interior under Trump 2.0 — Migration Policy Institute
In Minnesota, nearly 60% of the state's total labor force and employment growth came from foreign-born workers.
How the ICE crackdown is impacting Minnesota's economy — CBS News
Immigration raids have scared off customers and workers in the Twin Cities, leading to economic suffering in areas targeted by federal officials.
'It's Been Brutal': Twin Cities Economy Suffers Under ICE Crackdown — The New York Times
Somali immigrants in Minnesota commit more crime than natives.
Yes, Somali Immigrants Commit More Crime Than Natives — City Journal
ICE has deported roughly 540,000 people since January 2025.
ICE expansion has outpaced accountability. What are the remedies? — Brookings Institution
đź“° Source Timeline (8)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
February 13, 2026
6:44 PM
ICE drawdown in Minneapolis: No deals made with federal government, sheriff says
New information:
- Hennepin County Sheriff Dawanna Witt says her office has not entered into any new agreements with the federal government or ICE "despite what some influential leaders have conveyed."
- Witt publicly calls Operation Metro Surge "unprecedented," says deputies had no template, and acknowledges the surge has "eroded" public trust in law enforcement.
- She backs the county’s existing policy of not honoring ICE detainers and stresses that communication and truthful information from all levels of leadership are critical going forward.
- The Hennepin County Board has just passed a resolution urging the sheriff not to make "substantive changes" that would increase voluntary cooperation with ICE and to notify the board and public of any such changes.
February 12, 2026
5:09 PM
ICE surge to end in Minnesota, border czar Tom Homan announces
New information:
- Adds Alpha News’ framing that Homan is explicitly calling the surge a 'success' and that the operation is 'to end in Minnesota,' reinforcing that this is not just a draw‑down but a declared conclusion.
- Provides an additional conservative outlet’s account of the announcement, useful for cross‑checking language against other federal statements and earlier leaks about a ramp‑down.
- Helps confirm that the 'ICE surge' being ended is the same enforcement wave Twin Cities leaders and courts have been fighting under the Operation Metro Surge label.
2:43 PM
Border Czar Tom Homan announces end to Operation Metro Surge, claiming success
New information:
- Homan explicitly characterizes Operation Metro Surge as ended and claims it was a "success," despite widespread local opposition and ongoing litigation.
- He offers his own metrics of success (arrest totals, how many he labels 'worst of the worst') and spins court losses and habeas releases as minor or expected, rather than evidence of systemic constitutional violations.
- Homan signals that while the branded 'Metro Surge' is over, ICE and Border Patrol will continue a heightened presence and operations in Minnesota, and he leaves the door open to similar surges elsewhere.
2:27 PM
White House border official Tom Homan announces the conclusion of Operation Metro Surge
New information:
- Tom Homan is now explicitly announcing the conclusion of Operation Metro Surge rather than just a partial reduction in deployed agents.
- The White House is formally characterizing the Metro Surge deployment as complete, rather than ongoing with a smaller footprint.
- The article’s timing and framing make clear this is the official end of the named operation, not merely another adjustment in staffing levels.
February 05, 2026
4:25 AM
Protesters react to federal agent drawdown in MN
New information:
- FOX 9 confirms Tom Homan’s public statement that about 700 federal immigration agents are being pulled from Minnesota, leaving roughly 2,000 still deployed under the surge.
- Homan tells FOX 9 that the 'target list is reducing' as state prisons and county jails increasingly coordinate with ICE and Border Patrol, allowing agents to pick people up directly from jails and prisons.
- Protesters gathered outside the Whipple Federal Building explicitly dismiss the drawdown as a 'superficial gesture,' saying a full withdrawal of ICE from Minnesota is the only acceptable outcome and warning the move is meant to get communities to 'let down our guard.'
2:17 AM
Minneapolis city leaders concerned about remaining ICE agents
New information:
- Border Czar Tom Homan says 700 federal immigration officers will be withdrawn from Minnesota but roughly 2,000 ICE officers will remain.
- Mayor Jacob Frey explicitly ties Operation Metro Surge to two of Minneapolis’ three homicides this year, both involving ICE agents.
- Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette publicly states that the continued presence of 2,000 ICE officers is driving fear, affecting businesses, schools and daily life.
- Homan conditions a full end to the surge on the 'safety' of ICE officers from protesters, indicating federal willingness to keep the operation going on that basis.
January 27, 2026
8:40 PM
Nicollet Avenue shops offer free meals and shelter after federal officers kill resident
New information:
- Details that on Nicollet Avenue’s Eat Street, restaurants and shops opened their doors as ad hoc warming centers and medical triage sites in the minutes and hours after a Minneapolis resident was killed by federal immigration agents.
- Business owners along the corridor are now exhausted and unsure how to keep operating under the threat of more violence and raids in front of their doors.
- This piece grounds the political fight over Metro Surge in a specific commercial corridor, showing how federal use of force has literally turned private storefronts into front‑line response space.