As the number of deportations of unauthorized migrants increases the tension between Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and anti-ICE protesters, assaults on ICE agents have also increased.
A series of attacks took place in Texas and Oregon on the Fourth of July, nearly a month since demonstrations first erupted in California on June 8
Federal authorities apprehended a 32-year-old military veteran, Benjamin Hanil Song, on Monday, in connection with an attack on an ICE facility in Alvarado, Texas, where a group of “assailants lured officers out of the building and opened fire, shooting one officer in the neck.”
The alleged shooter had been on the run for 11 days before he was arrested.
The same day as the Texas attack, three people assaulted federal officers near the ICE office in South Portland. As the individuals face felony charges, the federal facility continues to face daily threats and vandalism.
The Department of Homeland Security alleged Portland’s anti-ICE groups — namely the Rose City Counter-Info and The Crustian Daily — are publishing sensitive information about ICE officers.
The information about the federal agents — their names, addresses, pictures of them and their families — also appeared on flyers in the neighborhoods they live in, alongside threats, like “No Peace For ICE,” the DHS said.
ICE federal agents, carrying out the Trump White House’s deportation orders and protecting federal buildings, are facing increased threats.
The Department of Homeland Security reported a nearly 700% spike in assaults on ICE officers.
“Brave ICE law enforcement are risking their lives every day to keep our communities safe from the worst of the worst criminals,” said DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
What do the numbers say
According to Fox News, “DHS recorded 10 assault events from Jan. 21, 2024, to June 30, 2024. From the day after President Donald Trump took office earlier this year until Monday, the department recorded 79 assault events, representing a 690% increase year over year."
The available U.S. Custom Border Protection’s data shows a slightly different story. It recorded 51 “assault incidents” in June, the peak of the anti-ICE protests that began in Los Angeles and spread nationwide.
By comparison, 22 incidents were recorded in May and 32 in April. From January 2025 until June 2025, the CBP reported 174 incidents of assault.
From January 2024 until June 2024 the CBP recorded 184 incidents of assault.
The confrontations used to happen at the souther border, which witnessed a wave of millions of migrants entering the country illegally under President Joe Biden. But now, they’re happening as ICE agents arrest unauthorized migrants for deportation.
As CNN’s Juliette Kayyem noted in a post on X, ICE hasn’t provided data behind the stark increase in assaults, while noting that the DHS uses the term assault loosely. And though the percentage continues to go up each month, DHS hasn’t released information about the hundreds of cases. Other outlets have also reported a lack of transparency on the numbers being shared by the Trump administration.
Either way, the Trump administration says it maintains zero tolerance for violence on federal agents and continues to issue warnings to protesters.
“You should go to prison. President Trump made that clear the other day. This is ridiculous,” said Border Czar Tom Homan.
“You put a hand on an ICE officer, you’re going to jail. You impede an ICE officer, you’re being prosecuted.”