Tag Archives: Operation Midway Blitz

Newsweek: ICE Agents Dragged Naked Children Out of Homes in Chicago Raid: Neighbors

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Several South Shore residents reported witnessing federal immigration agents forcibly removing unclothed children from apartments during the pre-dawn raid in Chicago.

Newsweek reached out to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for comment via email.

Why It Matters

Immigration enforcement is at the forefront of the national conversation surrounding the policy in the United States as the administration pushes to remove millions of migrants without legal status. The administration is facing increased scrutiny as well as several allegations of misconduct against federal agents.

What To Know

In the pre-dawn hours of September 30, federal agencies coordinated a large-scale immigration enforcement action targeting a five-story apartment building near 75th Street and South Shore Drive, according to a Department of Homeland Security official. The DHS said that 37 individuals were arrested and that the operation involved the U.S. Border Patrol, FBI, and ATF.

The agency claimed the building and surrounding area were tied to activity by the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, and that those arrested included people allegedly involved in drug trafficking, weapons offenses, or immigration violations.

Ebony Sweets Watson, who lives across the street from the building, told WBEZ Chicago that she saw federal agents dragging residents, including children, out of the building without clothes and loading them into U-Haul vans. She said the children were separated from their mothers.

Watson says she observed what appeared to be “hundreds” of agents outside her home.

“It was heartbreaking to watch,” Watson told the news station. “Even if you’re not a mother, seeing kids coming out buck naked and taken from their mothers, it was horrible.”

“Stuff was everywhere,” Watson told WBEZ. “You could see people’s birth certificates and papers thrown all over. Water was leaking into the hallway. It was wicked crazy.”

Pertissue Fisher, a woman who lives in the building, told CBS News Chicago: “No shoes, the kids didn’t have no shirts or no pants on. They just treated us like we were nothing.”

This raid comes amid Operation Midway Blitz, a federal push across Chicago and the wider Illinois area that began in early September. The initiative aims to apprehend undocumented immigrants, particularly those with criminal records, under a broader mandate by DHS.

The administration is coordinating multiple federal agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the U.S. Border Patrol, the FBI, and the ATF, to carry out enforcement operations nationwide. Critics have characterized some of the immigration raids as aggressive and have raised concerns about potential violations of due process and the treatment of migrants in custody.

ICE and U.S. Border Patrol officers arrested more than 800 individuals without legal status during Operation Midway Blitz, according to a press release by DHS issued on October 1.

What People Are Saying

A DHS official told Newsweek: “In the early morning hours of September 30, 2025, allied federal law enforcement agencies with CBP, FBI, and ATF, executed an enforcement operation in Chicago’s South Shore area, a location known to be frequented by Tren de Aragua members and their associates. Some of the targeted subjects are believed to be involved in drug trafficking and distribution, weapons crimes, and immigration violators.

What Happens Next

Immigration arrests are expected to continue as part of Operation Midway Blitz in Chicago.

ICE agents dragged naked children out of homes in Chicago: Neighbors
Two residents reported witnessing federal immigration agents forcibly removing unclothed children from apartments during the raid.

https://www.newsweek.com/ice-agents-dragged-naked-children-out-homes-chicago-raid-10823150

Irish Star: ICE agents drag children out of bed as they ransack Chicago apartment complex

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Chicago residents described the shocking experience following a late-night ICE raid on Tuesday, during which children were dragged out of their beds as the apartment complex was ransacked

A Chicago community is reeling following a late-night immigration raid on a South Side apartment complex.

Over 300 armed federal agents swarmed a five-story apartment complex late Tuesday evening in what became an hours-long immigration raid.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, alongside the FBI and U.S. Border Patrol agents, were targeting over 30 suspected members of the Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said 37 people were arrested.

Federal agents were seen rappelling from a Black Hawk helicopter on top of the building.

“My building is shaking. So, I’m like, ‘What is that?’ Then I look out the window, it’s a Blackhawk helicopter,” witness Dr. Alii Muhammad told ABC7 Chicago.

Residents said they ducked for cover as they heard several flash bangs go off, reports MSNBC.

One resident described the experience as “terrifying.”

“It was terrifying. The kids was crying. People were screaming. They were very distraught. I was out there crying when I seen the little girl come around the corner because they were bringing the kids out too, they had them zip-tied together,” said resident Eboni Watson to ABC7 Chicago.

“It was scary because I never had a gun put in my face,” another resident told the outlet.

Although the raid was aimed at detaining the suspected gang members, many residents say that U.S. citizens and children were swept into the mix.

Watson told the outlet that trucks and military-style vans were used to separate parents from their children. Other neighbors said agents destroyed property to get in the building, with doors blown off their hinges and holes in the wall, reports ABC7 Chicago.

According to MSNBC, dozens of residents were pulled from their homes in zip ties, including children. Residents were detained and held for hours, and cops told them that if they had any unrelated warrants, they would not be returning to their residences.

The raid on the apartment complex comes as Chicago residents have continuously staged protests against increased immigration enforcement activity in downtown Chicago. U.S. President Donald Trump previously vowed to deploy National Guard Troops to fight crime in Chicago, mirroring his current approach in Washington, D.C.

Beginning on Sept. 9, the Trump administration sent ICE to the city through Operation Midway Blitz. The U.S. The DHS launched the operation, which focuses on individuals in the country without legal status who also have criminal records or pending charges.

On Tuesday, during a massive military meeting at the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Virginia, Trump declared that Chicago is one of many Democratic cities that should be used as a “training ground” for the U.S. military.

ICE agents drag children out of bed as they ransack apartment complex
Chicago residents described the shocking experience following a late-night ICE raid on Tuesday, during which children were dragged out of their beds as the apartment complex was ransacked

https://www.irishstar.com/news/us-news/ice-agents-drag-children-bed-36011822

Daily Beast: ICE Barbie Could Be Hit With Subpoena After Photo Op Flub: Ex-Prosecutor

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DHS boss Kristi [“Bimbo #2”] Noem joined law enforcement on a raid in which U.S. citizens were detained.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi [“Bimbo #2”] Noem could be subpoenaed after she joined a blundering ICE raid in which two U.S. citizens were wrongly detained, according to a former prosecutor.

[“Bimbo #2”] Noem—dubbed ICE Barbie for her love of dolling up in military gear for photo-ops—was present when the Americans were detained by her masked goons Tuesday as part of her ongoing “Operation Midway Blitz” in the Chicago area.

The embarrassing episode—which took place on Mexican Independence Day—prompted a former federal prosecutor to warn that Noem could be compelled to testify.

Joyce Vance—the former U.S. attorney in Alabama during the Obama administration and now an NBC and MSNBC legal analyst—argued in her Civil Discourse newsletter that Noem’s presence in an active operation potentially makes her a witness, opening the door to defense and civil lawyers seeking her testimony.

She wrote that [“Bimbo #2”] Noem’s on-scene involvement was “dangerous” and apparently done for “a photo op.”

“[“Bimbo #2”] Noem, too, should be concerned about the security risk her presence creates,” Vance wrote. “Furthermore, if [“Bimbo #2”] Noem accompanied agents to the scene, as the reporting indicates, she made herself a witness. If I’m a criminal defense lawyer for one of the men or a plaintiff’s lawyer in a civil suit, I’m cutting the subpoena for her testimony pronto.”

“This is why smart prosecutors know better than to go along when a search warrant is executed, let alone an attorney general or a Cabinet secretary,” Vance added. “But [“Bimbo #2”] Noem likes her photo ops.”

In typical fashion, [“Bimbo #2”] Noem has leaned into the cameras throughout Operation Midway Blitz.

[“Bimbo #2”] Noem boasted that she was “on the ground in Chicago” Tuesday as agents arrested what the department called “the worst of the worst.”

Coverage of the operation in Elgin, Illinois, noted that two U.S. citizens were cuffed and later released. [“Bimbo #2”] Noem posted footage herself on X.

However, one of those detained was Texas-born Joe Botello.

“I’m just blessed that I’m still alive,” the 37-year-old told theChicago Tribune, describing how armed and masked agents had smashed down his door and handcuffed him and his friends.

“I’ve been hearing it and seeing it through social media. But it never crossed my mind that it was going to happen here at the house… where I live.”

CBS News reported that a second U.S. citizen was also arrested during the raid. After showing their IDs, they were both released.

In a statement to the Daily Beast, a DHS spokesperson denied any “arrest” of U.S. citizens in the operation, insisting the men were held only “for their and officers’ safety… [which] is standard protocol.”

[“Bimbo #2”] Noem’s own video did not acknowledge the mistake.

ICE Barbie Could Be Hit With Subpoena After Photo Op Flub: Ex-Prosecutor
DHS boss Kristi [“Bimbo #2”] Noem joined law enforcement on a raid in which U.S. citizens were detained.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/ice-barbie-could-be-hit-with-subpoena-after-photo-op-flub-joyce-vance

Fox News: ICE agents break car window to arrest resisting illegal immigrant in exclusive Fox News ride-along

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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) began Operation Midway Blitz in Chicago this week, arresting multiple criminal illegal immigrants as Fox News joined agents for an exclusive ride-along.

On Tuesday, ICE agents arrested a Mexican national on a federal criminal arrest warrant for multiple felony reentries into the United States. Fox News learned that the individual had been deported twice to Mexico and returned a third time to the U.S. He is also facing charges for assault in a previous case.

Fox News cameras followed agents as they approached the Mexican national outside his home. The individual tried to enter his car to avoid arrest, forcing ICE agents to break its window and extract him from the vehicle. He then appears to continue resisting arrest.

The Mexican national will face federal criminal prosecution before he is deported, potentially spending time in jail, Fox News learned.

ICE and Fox lie as usual — this guy’s only “crime” was being in the U.S. too often. We are not made the least bit safer by his arrest, and taxpayers will be funding his room and board.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/ice-agents-break-car-window-to-arrest-resisting-illegal-immigrant-in-exclusive-fox-news-ride-along/ar-AA1McWfM

Fox News: DHS launches major operation in Illinois targeting illegal immigrants with criminal records

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DHS launches major operation in Illinois targeting illegal immigrants with criminal records
Chicago reporter William J. Kelly joins ‘Fox & Friends First’ to discuss the Trump administration’s ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ in Illinois as Democrats continue to push back against the possibility of a Trump-sanctioned crime crackdown.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/dhs-launches-major-operation-in-illinois-targeting-illegal-immigrants-with-criminal-records/vi-AA1MbtNp

Problem is, not withstanding DHS’s endless lies to contrary, most of the people rounded up in these sweeps are NOT criminals.

Reuters: Trump administration says it launched ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ in Chicago

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  • DHS says operation targets ‘criminal illegal aliens’ in Chicago
  • Illinois governor say no advance notice or coordination provided
  • Critics decry ‘Operation Midway Blitz’ as political theater
  • Local officials say ICE sweep terrorizes Latino communities

After weeks of vowing to deploy National Guard troops to fight crime in Chicago, the Trump administration said on Monday it had launched a deportation crackdown in Illinois targeting hardened criminals among immigrants in the U.S. without legal status.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in an online statement that “Operation Midway Blitz” was being conducted by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, but details about its scope and nature were not immediately made clear.

It remained to be seen whether President Donald Trump would send National Guard soldiers into Chicago to accompany ICE and other federal law enforcement officers, as he has in and around Los Angeles and the District of Columbia.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, both Democrats, each said their offices had received no official notice from federal authorities about the operation, which they decried as a political stunt designed to intimidate.

Trump has been ramping up his rhetoric about expanding federal law enforcement and National Guard presence in Democratic-led cities and states, casting the use of presidential power as an urgent effort to confront crime even as local officials cite declines in homicides and other violent offenses.

DHS said its latest ICE operation was necessary because of city and state “sanctuary” laws that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the crackdown was aimed at convicted gang members, rapists, kidnappers and drug traffickers who she called “the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens in Chicago.”

The press release cited 11 cases of immigrants in the U.S. illegally, most from Mexico and Venezuela, who DHS said had records of arrest or convictions for serious crimes and were released from local jails rather than turned over to federal immigration officials.

City Alderwoman Jeylu Gutierrez, who represents the predominantly Hispanic 14th Ward on Chicago’s southwest side, said at least five members of her community had been detained in what she called a “federal assault.”

Among those arrested, Gutierrez said, was a flower vendor taken into custody on the job, while others were detained as they waited for a bus or walked on the sidewalk.

‘THIS ISN’T ABOUT FIGHTING CRIME’

“This was never about arresting the worst of the worst, this is about terrorizing our communities,” Gutierrez, a Mexican immigrant, told a press conference.

Pritzker, widely seen as a potential 2028 candidate for the White House, also disputed the crime-fighting rationale that Trump voiced last Tuesday when he said he would send National Guard troops to Chicago, the nation’s third most populous city and a Democratic stronghold.

“This isn’t about fighting crime,” Pritzker said on social media platform X on Monday. “That requires support and coordination — yet we’ve experienced nothing like that over the past several weeks.”

Pritzker has suggested Trump’s National Guard deployments might be a dress rehearsal for using the military to manipulate the 2026 midterm congressional elections.

Johnson said he was concerned about “potential militarized immigration enforcement without due process,” citing “ICE’s track record of detaining and deporting American citizens and violating the human rights of hundreds of detainees.”

In a post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump cited recent murders and shootings in Chicago and blamed Pritzker for making no requests for assistance from the Trump administration.

“I want to help the people of Chicago, not hurt them,” Trump wrote. “Only the Criminals will be hurt! We can move fast and stop this madness.”

In a separate post on Saturday, Trump posted a meme based on the 1979 Vietnam War movie “Apocalypse Now” that showed an image of the Chicago skyline with flames and helicopters, reminiscent of the deadly helicopter attack on a Vietnamese village in the film.

The Trump administration launched a parallel immigration enforcement operation in Boston in recent days, an ICE official confirmed on Monday.

ICE also said on Monday that its Houston-based agents had arrested 822 “criminal aliens, transnational gang members, child predators, foreign fugitives and other egregious offenders” during a week-long operation last month in southeastern Texas.

Previously, DHS said ICE had arrested nearly 1,500 immigration offenders during a month-long enforcement surge in Massachusetts in May and early June.

The latest ICE operation in Chicago was announced the same day that the U.S. Supreme Court issued a 6-3 decision allowing federal agents in Southern California to proceed with immigration raids that detain people on the basis of their race, ethnicity, language or accent, even without “reasonable suspicion” that they are in the country illegally.

Trump administration says it launches ICE crackdown in Illinois
After weeks of vowing to deploy National Guard troops to fight crime in Chicago, the Trump administration said on Monday it had launched a deportation crackdown in Illinois targeting hardened criminals among immigrants in the U.S. without legal status.

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-administration-says-it-launches-ice-crackdown-illinois-2025-09-08