US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he had ordered the Department of Homeland Security not to interfere in any way with protests in Democratic-led cities unless they seek federal assistance or federal property is threatened, Reuters reported.
Cities must protect their state and local property, Trump wrote on his social network "Truth Social". The staff of "ICE" (ICE - US Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and the Border Patrol will continue to guard federal buildings, Trump said.
The publication comes a day after thousands of people took to the streets in Minneapolis and elsewhere in the country to demand the withdrawal of federal immigration agencies from Minnesota, where two American citizens were shot.
Protests were held in 250 locations in 46 US states, including cities such as New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, organizers said.
The Trump administration has sent 3,000 federal employees to the Minneapolis area as part of a campaign to combat illegal immigration, the agency recalls.
Trump has previously sent federal employees or members of the National Guard to several other cities, mostly run by Democrats, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Washington and Portland. The president claims that this is necessary to enforce immigration laws and control crime.
Local leaders in the cities in question dispute this assessment.