US arrests more than 1,200 people in crackdown on illegal immigration

Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, supported by several agencies, conducts 'enhanced targeted operations to preserve public safety and national security'

• 

  US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents knock on the door of a residence during a multi-agency targeted enforcement operation in Chicago, Illinois, US, on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025. President Donald Trump has pledged to carry out the largest deportation effort in US history, vowing to ultimately deport all of the foreigners living in the country without permission. Photographer: Christopher Dilts / Bloomberg

• 

  ICE agents detain a suspect Lyons, Illinois, during the immigration crackdown. Bloomberg

• 

  Migrants cross the US-Mexico border after being deported from El Paso, Texas, to Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua state, in northern Mexico. Bloomberg

• 

  Migrants descend from a US military plane at the Guatemalan Air Force base in Guatemala City, after being deported from America. AFP

• 

  A giant tent in Ciudad Juarez, where Mexican authorities are building temporary shelter for migrants deported from the US. Reuters

• 

  A room at the Flamingos social club, which will be used to house migrants deported from the US, in Tijuana, north-west Mexico. Reuters

• 

  A Brazilian migrant deported from the US is welcomed at Confins International Airport, in Belo Horizonte, eastern Brazil. Reuters

• 

  An aircraft that brought Brazilians deported from the US pictured at Eduardo Gomes International Airport in Manaus, Amazonas state, north-west Brazil. AFP

• 

  Mexican Navy personnel erect temporary shelter for deported migrants at Matamoros, Tamaulipas state, in north-east Mexico. AFP

A weekend immigration sweep in various parts of the US involved more 1,200 arrests, as President Donald Trump's administration follows through on promises to crack down on illegal immigration.

US Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (Ice) said it arrested 1,242 people on Saturday and Sunday in what it called "enhanced targeted operations” to “preserve public safety and national security by keeping potentially dangerous criminal aliens out of our communities”.

Tom Homan, former acting director of Ice who has been appointed Mr Trump's border tsar, was in Chicago to oversee operations. The raids in the Midwest city drew widespread media attention, with even TV personality Dr Phil McGraw joining Mr Homan to live-stream events.

Mr Homan told CNN that Sunday’s enforcement actions in Chicago represented “a good day” and a “game-changer”. He said current efforts were focused on “criminal aliens”, while immigration raids were also reported in big cities in Georgia, Colorado, California and Texas.

During his first few days in office, Mr Trump declared an emergency on the southern US border and vowed to arrest and deport millions of people living in the country illegally. The Pentagon said last week it was sending 1,500 troops to work on the US-Mexico border. US troops are not allowed to take part in arrests on home soil, though that could change if Mr Trump invokes a law from the 1800s called the Insurrection Act.

Newly appointed Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who was confirmed in position on Friday despite losing the support of three Republicans over his lack of experience and personal conduct, said the US military would “absolutely” help with the mass deportation of migrants.

“Support of mass deportations in support of the President’s objective – that is something the Defence Department absolutely will continue to do,” Mr Hegseth said, as he arrived at the Pentagon for his first day on the job. “The lawful orders of the President of United States will be executed inside this Defence Department – swiftly and without excuse.”

The increasing number of raids comes amid international backlash from countries being asked to receive flights carrying deported migrants.

On Sunday, Colombian President Gustavo Petro refused to allow military aircraft carrying deported migrants to land in his country, saying Mr Trump needed to come up with a plan to treat migrants "with dignity”. After tit-for-tat threats of tariffs and sanctions, the White House said Colombia had agreed to accept the flights.

“It is the responsibility of each nation to take back their citizens who are illegally present in the United States in a serious and expeditious manner,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in response to Mr Petro's actions on Sunday. “As demonstrated by today’s actions, we are unwavering in our commitment to end illegal immigration and bolster America’s border security.”

Mexico has also allowed flights carrying non-Mexican deported migrants to land in its territory, in an apparent reversal of President Claudia Sheinbaum's previous opposition to doing so. “From January 20 to [January] 26, 4,094 people, the vast majority of them Mexicans, have been received,” she said in her daily press conference on Monday.