标签： North America

A deepening political crisis is unfolding in Minnesota as state leaders demand the immediate withdrawal of federal immigration officers following a second fatal shooting by US agents in Minneapolis. The incident, which occurred on Saturday, has ignited fresh protests and exposed severe fractures between state and federal authorities.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz condemned the shooting as “horrific” and insisted that state investigators take charge of the case, declaring, “The federal government cannot be trusted to lead this investigation.” However, according to Associated Press reports, the Department of Homeland Security blocked state investigators from accessing the crime scene despite having a signed warrant.

The DHS presented a starkly different account of the incident, characterizing it as an attack on federal personnel. Officials claimed a Border Patrol agent acted in self-defense after 37-year-old Alex Pretti—an ICU nurse at a VA hospital licensed to carry a concealed weapon—approached agents with a handgun and resisted disarmament attempts. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem described Pretti as intending to “inflict maximum damage” while White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller labeled him an “assassin.”

This narrative conflicts directly with verified bystander footage reviewed by Reuters, which shows Pretti holding a phone rather than a firearm while attempting to assist protesters who had been pushed to the ground by immigration agents.

The shooting represents the second such incident in weeks, following the January 7th death of Renee Good, where similar discrepancies emerged between federal accounts and cellphone evidence. A recent Hennepin county medical examiner’s report classified Good’s death as a homicide.

President Donald Trump escalated tensions by accusing Governor Walz and Minneapolis officials of “inciting Insurrection” through their “pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric.” The administration has deployed approximately 3,000 federal agents to Minneapolis as part of a sweeping immigration crackdown backed by $170 billion in funding through 2029.

Former President Barack Obama broke silence to call Pretti’s death a “heartbreaking tragedy” warning that “many of our core values as a nation are increasingly under assault.” He urged the administration to collaborate with local officials “to avert more chaos.”

Academic experts warn the standoff may have far-reaching consequences. Professor Chen Hong of East China Normal University predicts the conflicting law enforcement narratives will harden positions and intensify social tensions, potentially spilling into Congressional battles over immigration policy, homeland security funding, and law enforcement oversight that could trigger government shutdowns.

Professor Li Haidong of China Foreign Affairs University notes that the Republican-led federal government’s immigration crackdown in a Democratic stronghold known for its diverse immigrant culture appears designed to reshape the local voter base through mass deportations. These policies have severely disrupted Minnesota’s social fabric and cultural ecosystem, generating widespread public discontent that promises to make immigration a central battleground in upcoming midterm elections.

A diplomatic crisis has erupted within NATO following the United States’ controversial push to acquire Greenland, creating unprecedented tensions among Western allies. The world’s largest island, spanning over 2.16 million square kilometers with a mere 57,000 inhabitants, has become the epicenter of a geopolitical storm that threatens to undermine the foundation of the transatlantic alliance.

President Donald Trump’s public declaration of interest in bringing the Danish territory under US control, justified as a ‘national security’ measure against perceived Russian and Chinese presence, sent shockwaves through European capitals. The situation escalated when Trump announced following his meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Davos that he had established the ‘framework of a future deal’ concerning Greenland and the broader Arctic region.

European leaders responded with alarm and firm resistance. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen asserted unwavering commitment to sovereignty, stating, ‘We can negotiate on everything political; security, investments, economy. But we cannot negotiate on our sovereignty.’ The crisis prompted an emergency EU summit in Brussels where foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas acknowledged that ‘trans-Atlantic relations have definitely taken a big blow over the last week.’

Security experts warned of potentially devastating consequences. Professor Michael A. Allen of Boise State University cautioned that ‘if gained through coercion, the impact would have been devastating for the United States and the rest of the world,’ potentially causing the collapse of NATO itself. The alliance, formed in 1949 to provide collective security, faced its most serious internal crisis in decades.

The tension temporarily eased when Trump withdrew threats of imposing punitive tariffs—initially set at 10% escalating to 25%—against eight European nations that opposed the Greenland initiative. However, the episode has fundamentally altered dynamics within the alliance, with leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer demonstrating unusually direct criticism of US actions.

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun dismissed Trump’s security concerns as ‘baseless,’ reaffirming China’s commitment to UN Charter principles in international relations. The Greenland controversy has exposed deepening fractures within NATO and raised questions about the future of US leadership in the alliance amid shifting global power dynamics.

Minneapolis became the epicenter of a national political firestorm this weekend as protests erupted following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse, by federal immigration agents. The incident has triggered a severe constitutional crisis, pitting state authorities against federal power and exposing deep divisions within American society.

Tensions reached a boiling point on Sunday as hundreds of demonstrators braved freezing temperatures in Minneapolis, with parallel protests emerging in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Armed federal agents deployed tear gas and stun grenades against crowds demanding justice for Pretti and calling for the abolition of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The confrontation between state and federal authorities intensified dramatically when Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara revealed to the BBC that state officers were deliberately blocked from accessing the shooting scene by federal agents, despite possessing a valid search warrant. This obstruction has severely hampered ongoing investigations and raised serious questions about accountability and jurisdictional overreach.

At the political level, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz declared America at an ‘inflection point’ and repeatedly demanded President Trump withdraw federal agents from the city. Conversely, Trump issued counter-demands through Truth Social, insisting that Walz and ‘EVERY Democrat Governor and Mayor’ must ‘formally cooperate with the Trump Administration to enforce our Nation’s Laws.’

The administration’s characterization of Pretti as a ‘domestic terrorist’ has been vehemently contested by his family, who described these claims as ‘sickening lies’ and ‘reprehensible.’ Court records confirm Pretti had no criminal history beyond minor traffic violations, and local authorities maintain his firearm was legally registered and not being brandished at the time of the shooting.

Remarkably, the National Rifle Association joined other gun lobby groups in calling for a ‘full investigation,’ breaking with its typical alignment with the Trump administration. Meanwhile, the chief executives of over 60 Minnesota-based corporations, including 3M, Best Buy, Target, and UnitedHealth Group, signed an open letter demanding immediate de-escalation and collaborative solutions between local and federal officials.

This shooting follows weeks of escalating tensions in Minneapolis and comes just weeks after the ICE-related killing of 37-year-old Renee Good during similar immigration enforcement operations. The situation has created rare bipartisan concern, with Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt and Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy both expressing serious reservations about federal tactics and accountability.

As Democrats threaten to block government funding packages containing Homeland Security allocations, the nation faces the prospect of another government shutdown while grappling with fundamental questions about immigration enforcement, states’ rights, and the appropriate use of federal power.

A historic Minneapolis church has transformed into an emergency refuge center following the fatal shooting of intensive care nurse Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents—the second such incident involving U.S. citizens in less than a month. Calvary Baptist Church, situated mere blocks from Saturday’s confrontation, opened its doors Sunday to provide warmth, sustenance, and solace to a community gripped by tension and grief.

Volunteers distributed coffee, snacks, and hand warmers to visitors ranging from mourners heading to Pretti’s memorial to protesters returning from demonstrations against the weeks-long Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation. Church administrator Dean Caldwell-Tautges characterized the outreach as “the Christian thing to do” while distributing whistles used to alert residents to ICE activity.

The shooting has intensified national scrutiny on President Trump’s immigration crackdown, which deployed thousands of agents to the Democrat-held state in December. While the administration defends the operation as a public safety measure targeting criminal migrants, critics cite detentions of non-criminal immigrants and U.S. citizens. The Department of Homeland Security claims agents acted in self-defense against an armed Pretti, but eyewitnesses and family members assert he was holding a phone, not a weapon.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has demanded immediate withdrawal of federal agents, stating: “We believe that Trump needs to pull his 3,000 untrained agents out of Minnesota before they kill another American in the street.” The president praised agents’ “phenomenal job” in a Wall Street Journal interview while hinting at an eventual withdrawal without specifying timelines.

Sunday saw hundreds gather for impromptu protests where chants of “No more Minnesota nice, Minneapolis will strike” echoed through downtown. Demonstrators included first-time protester Felix Johnson, who expressed disbelief at citizens being “snatched like animals,” and military veterans holding signs proclaiming “Veterans Against ICE.” Despite local opposition, national polls indicate approximately half of voters support Trump’s deportation efforts, though opinions are divided on implementation methods.