LOS ANGELES (AP) — Protests over a wave of immigration enforcement operations intensified for a second consecutive day in Los Angeles, with demonstrators and riot police clashing Saturday in the southeast neighborhood of Paramount following reports of continued federal raids targeting undocumented residents.
Tensions flared as Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents carried out arrests outside a home improvement store, prompting spontaneous protests and confrontations with law enforcement. Officers in riot gear deployed tear gas and flashbang grenades to disperse crowds, while demonstrators hurled rocks, bottles, and fireworks. A vehicle was set ablaze as authorities struggled to maintain control.
Dozens of federal officers in green uniforms and gas masks were seen confronting demonstrators along streets lined with overturned shopping carts. Protesters chanted slogans against ICE and held signs reading “No Human Being is Illegal,” demanding federal agents leave the neighborhood.
One protester shouted through a megaphone, “ICE out of Paramount. We see you for what you are. You are not welcome here.”
The clashes followed immigration raids conducted by ICE late Friday that resulted in at least 44 arrests for alleged immigration violations. In response, demonstrators flooded the area surrounding the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles, where detainees were being processed, blocking entrances and chanting, “Set them free, let them stay!”
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reported that approximately 1,000 people surrounded the federal building, damaging property, slashing tires, and confronting officers. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem issued a stern warning, writing on social media, “You will not stop us or slow us down… If you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
The unrest comes amid President Donald Trump’s renewed push for mass deportations. The administration has set a target of 3,000 immigration arrests per day. However, legal permanent residents and individuals with valid immigration status have reportedly been caught up in the sweeps, raising civil rights concerns and prompting legal challenges.
White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller called the protests “an insurrection against the laws and sovereignty of the United States.” On Saturday, he reiterated that view, labeling the unrest “a violent insurrection.”
In Compton, near Paramount, Al Jazeera correspondent Robert Reynolds reported that the initial confrontation erupted outside a Home Depot where undocumented day laborers frequently gather for work. ICE agents raided the site, arresting individuals who were later seen being transported in a bus marked with U.S. Marshals insignia.
“As news of the arrests spread, hundreds of people assembled to demand the release of those detained,” Reynolds said. “People expressed a deep sense of outrage that this is happening in their own neighborhoods.”
By Saturday evening, National Guard units were being prepared for deployment to Los Angeles, according to Trump’s immigration advisor Tom Homan.
Local officials condemned the raids. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement Friday, “I am deeply angered by what has taken place. These tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city. We will not stand for this.”
ICE acting director Todd Lyons rebuked Bass’s criticism, accusing her of siding with “chaos and lawlessness over law enforcement.”
“ICE will continue to enforce our nation’s immigration laws and arrest criminal illegal aliens,” Lyons said.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) condemned the federal operations as “paramilitary,” calling ICE agents “masked goons” and urging city officials to halt the crackdowns.
Immigration attorney Marc Christopher told Al Jazeera the current enforcement approach is more indiscriminate than in the past. “Previously, immigration enforcement focused on individuals with criminal histories or pending arrests. Now, it’s far more sweeping,” he said.
As of Saturday night, ICE and DHS had yet to comment publicly on the latest confrontations or reports of additional raids across Los Angeles.
