WASHINGTON: The White House sharply criticised a recent video by the New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, who is an Indian American, encouraging immigrants to “stand up to ICE, ” warning that such messages are contributing to a surge of harassment and violence against federal immigration officers.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the Trump administration is “definitely concerned about the rise in violence and attacks and physical threats” against agents, describing what she called an alarming escalation. “We’ve seen more than a 1, 000 per cent increase in violent attacks on them and their families, ” she said.
Leavitt said ICE officers “have been doxed, they’ve been harassed, many of them have been physically assaulted and attacked, ” asserting that they are simply “enforcing our nation’s immigration laws.”
Responding to a question on whether New York’s messaging might inspire residents to resist enforcement operations, she said the administration “condemns that wholeheartedly” and will continue its mission “in every state… to remove illegal aliens and public safety threats from American communities.”