Federal immigration and customs officials are planning to arrest thousands of undocumented families in a string of raids starting on Sunday, the New York Times reported early Thursday, citing sources.
The raids will target at least 2,000 immigrants in at least 10 major cities who have been ordered deported, as well as “collateral” deportations of immigrants who are present at the time of the raids but not targets, the Times reported, citing current and former homeland security officials. The raids will be conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, according to the report.
The raids, initially planned for last month, were postponed at the last minute after President Trump said he would give Democrats two weeks to come up with a plan to curb undocumented immigration.
New York city and state officials vowed last month to provide legal and other help to those targeted, and Mayor de Blasio joined mayors of major cities like Chicago, Miami and Los Angeles in vowing not to cooperate with the sweep.
Trump has threatened a series of increasingly drastic actions as he has tried to stem the flow of Central American migrants crossing the U.S. southern border. He recently dropped a threat to slap tariffs on Mexico after the country agreed to dispatch its national guard and step-up coordination and enforcement efforts.
Immigration was a central theme of Trump’s 2016 campaign and he is expected to hammer it as he tries to fire up his base heading into the 2020 campaign.
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