‘ICE is terrorising communities’: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani blasts Trump immigration policy

His remarks came as tens of thousands of people across the US protested immigration enforcement violence following the killing of Pretti, a US citizen and registered nurse who treated veterans. Pretti was shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent on the morning of January 24 after confronting immigration authorities.

Federal officials claimed Pretti was carrying a gun and intended to use it to harm the law enforcement officials. However, videos recorded by bystanders, as well as a witness account cited in court filings, do not show Pretti brandishing a weapon when he approached the agents.

Mamdani linked the killing to a broader pattern of fear created by federal immigration operations, pointing to another recent fatal shooting in Minneapolis. Weeks earlier, ICE officer Jonathan Ross shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good, triggering widespread protests and escalating tensions between state and federal authorities.

“We know the fear that so many are living with in Minneapolis. It’s a fear that New Yorkers are also living with a fear of being terrorised,” Mamdani said. “And I will do everything in my power to ensure that we do not see that take place in New York City.”

Mamdani stated that New York City has a number of tools at its disposal, including legal action, to challenge federal immigration operations similar to those carried out in Minneapolis.

As tens of thousands across America protest the violence that ICE sows with impunity, federal agents shot and killed another person in Minneapolis today.⁰⁰ICE terrorizes our cities. ICE puts us all in danger. Abolish ICE.

— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) January 24, 2026

The interview aired a day after Mamdani reiterated his call to dismantle the agency altogether. In a January 24 social media post on X, he wrote: “As tens of thousands across America protest the violence that ICE sows with impunity, federal agents shot and killed another person in Minneapolis today. ICE terrorizes our cities. ICE puts us all in danger. Abolish ICE.”

ICE and US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operate as separate agencies under the Department of Homeland Security. Both have been active in the Twin Cities area as part of the Trump administration’s expanded deportation drive.