Tom Homan formally declares end of Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota
White House border official Tom Homan formally announced the conclusion of Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota, calling it a “success,” citing arrest totals and downplaying court setbacks while signaling that ICE and Border Patrol will continue a heightened presence and that similar surges remain possible. Local leaders and protesters rejected the move as superficial — noting Homan said about 700 agents would be withdrawn while roughly 2,000 ICE officers remain, linking the surge to recent violence and harms to businesses, schools and daily life, and warning the drawdown could be contingent on perceived officer safety.
📌 Key Facts
- Tom Homan publicly announced the conclusion of Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota, and the White House is formally characterizing the deployment as complete.
- Homan called the operation a "success," citing arrest totals and labeling many arrestees the "worst of the worst," while downplaying court losses and habeas releases.
- Homan said about 700 federal immigration officers were withdrawn from Minnesota but roughly 2,000 ICE officers remain deployed.
- Homan conditioned any continued or full end on the "safety" of ICE officers from protesters and said the target list is reducing as state prisons and county jails increasingly coordinate with ICE and Border Patrol.
- Homan signaled that, although the branded "Metro Surge" is over, ICE and Border Patrol will continue a heightened presence in Minnesota and he left open the possibility of similar surges elsewhere.
- Minneapolis leaders and community officials reacted with concern: Mayor Jacob Frey tied the surge to two of the city's homicides this year involving ICE agents, and Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette said the continued presence of ICE is driving fear and affecting businesses, schools and daily life.
- Protesters outside the Whipple Federal Building dismissed the drawdown as a "superficial gesture," demanded a full ICE withdrawal from Minnesota, and warned the move was meant to get communities to "let down our guard."
- On Nicollet Avenue’s Eat Street, restaurants and shops opened as ad hoc warming centers and medical triage sites after a Minneapolis resident was killed by federal agents; business owners say they are exhausted and unsure how to keep operating under the threat of more violence and raids.
📊 Relevant Data
The economic and political instability in Venezuela since 2015, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, has been a primary driver of migration to the United States.
Venezuelan Immigrants in the United States — Migration Policy Institute
Federal immigration officers have been involved in 19 shootings during President Trump's second term, resulting in multiple deaths and injuries.
Data: Federal immigration officers involved in 19 shootings in Trump's second term — WBAL-TV
In Minnesota, immigrants, including undocumented individuals, are less likely to commit crimes than U.S.-born residents.
Minnesota's population grew by 33,000 people in 2025, reaching 5.83 million, with international immigration contributing 12,000 net new residents, down from 25,000 the previous year.
Minnesota gains 33,000 residents in 2025 despite immigration drop — Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal
Immigrants contribute approximately $26 billion to Minnesota's economy, with Somali Minnesotans contributing $8 billion.
Economist: Immigrants contribute $26 billion to Minnesota's economy — MPR News
📰 Source Timeline (7)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.'
- 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.
- 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.