Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to deploy military personnel in Minneapolis, where protests over the actions of immigration agents escalated after an ICE member shot and wounded a man the previous day.

The city in the northern state of Minnesota has been the scene of protests against the immigration service since last week over the death of a 37-year-old American woman at the hands of one of its agents.

Public anger increased after an ICE agent shot a Venezuelan man on Wednesday.

"If the corrupt politicians in Minnesota do not uphold the law and stop the attacks by professional agitators and insurgents against ICE patriots who are only trying to do their job, I will invoke the Insurrection Act," which grants him the power to deploy military forces on domestic soil, Trump declared on the Truth Social network.

Municipal authorities urged people to "remain calm."

Local police chief Brian O'Hara said the shooting occurred following an altercation in front of a residence between a man and an ICE agent in the north of the city on Wednesday night.

"During the struggle, the federal agent discharged his firearm and wounded an adult male," he explained at a press conference.

The Venezuelan citizen suffered a leg injury that was not life-threatening and was taken to a hospital for treatment, local authorities reported.

This incident follows the death of Renee Nicole Good in her car on January 7th from shots fired by an ICE agent during a raid against migrants, also in Minneapolis.

Since returning to the White House in January 2025, President Donald Trump has pushed for mass deportations of undocumented persons, one of his main campaign promises.

"We understand there is anger (...). Minneapolis once again demands that ICE leave the city and the state immediately," city authorities wrote on social media platform X.

O'Hara added that Wednesday's shooting drew a crowd of protesters to the scene, with some launching fireworks at the officers.

Speaking to journalists outside the White House, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem declined to answer whether she believes Trump should invoke the Insurrection Act—last used in 1992 under the administration of George H.W. Bush—and said she did not know if he would.

"That is his constitutional right, and it is up to him if he wants to use it," Noem said.

"It is not sustainable"

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials confirmed the shooting in a post on X, stating that "an illegal immigrant from Venezuela" was detained at a traffic stop and resisted arrest.

"While the individual and the police officer were struggling on the ground, two people came out of a nearby apartment and also attacked the officer with a snow shovel and a broom handle," the DHS indicated.

The agent "performed a defensive discharge to protect his life," wounding the first individual in the leg.

Authorities in Minneapolis and the state of Minnesota have rejected the actions of DHS agents, including those from ICE.

"This is not sustainable," Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey told journalists, adding: "We have ICE agents all over our city and all over our state who, along with the Border Patrol, are creating chaos."

"This is not the path we should be on right now in the United States," he insisted.

In a video posted on social media Wednesday, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz denounced "the chaos, disruption, and trauma that the federal government is unloading on our community."

He described door-to-door interrogations conducted by "armed, masked, and poorly trained" ICE agents.

On Thursday, Walz called on the president to "turn down the temperature" and stop "his campaign of retaliation."

Furthermore, he urged state residents to remain calm and to record any interaction with agents. He also asked the Homeland Security Secretary to "end this occupation; you've done enough."

Stephen Miller, President Trump's national security advisor, accused Minnesota authorities of "deliberately, intentionally, and purposely" inciting a "violent insurrection."

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt lashed out at journalists, claiming that "the media is absolutely complicit in this violence."