Federal authorities were already familiar with Alex Pretti before Border Patrol officers fatally shot him in Minneapolis last weekend, and he had suffered a broken rib during a violent encounter with immigration agents roughly a week earlier, according to a report.
Pretti, who worked as an ICU nurse, told a friend that he witnessed ICE agents chasing what he believed was a family on foot during that earlier episode and stopped his car to intervene, CNN reported.
According to the source, Pretti pulled over, began yelling at the agents, and blew a whistle, prompting five officers to tackle him to the ground.
The friend told CNN that Pretti later said one of the agents leaned on his back during the scuffle, leaving him with a broken rib.
“That day, he thought he was going to die,” the source said, noting that agents ultimately released Pretti at the scene.
CNN reported that federal immigration officials had compiled information on Pretti in recent weeks, along with details on other anti-ICE protesters active in Minneapolis.
A memo circulated this month to agents deployed to the city instructed them to “capture all images, license plates, identifications, and general information on hotels, agitators, protestors, etc., so we can capture it all in one consolidated form,” according to the network.
While Pretti’s identity was known to federal agents, a source said it remains unclear whether his details were entered into or shared through the new intake system.
Authorities also have not determined whether Pretti recognized the agents he confronted on Saturday, or whether they recognized him from the earlier incident.
Video footage appears to show agents forcing Pretti to the ground before one officer removes a firearm from his waistband and another agent fatally shoots him.
The Department of Homeland Security has denied maintaining a database of suspected domestic terrorists.
“We do, of course, monitor and investigate and refer all threats, assaults and obstruction of our officers to the appropriate law enforcement,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told CNN, referring to a separate case involving a federal agent in Maine.
FBI Director Kash Patel has separately said his agency is probing encrypted Signal group chats that activists reportedly use to share information about ICE operations.
Such groups “create a scenario that illegally entraps and puts law enforcement in harm’s way,” Director Patel warned during an appearance on a conservative podcast on Monday.
{Matzav.com}
As friction with Iran continues, the US military has announced the start of a major air exercise in the Middle East aimed at showcasing its ability to rapidly project and sustain airpower across the region.
US Central Command, through its air arm, the Ninth Air Force, confirmed that Air Forces Central will carry out what it described as a “multi-day readiness exercise to demonstrate the ability to deploy, disperse, and sustain combat airpower across the US Central Command area of responsibility.”
According to the command, “This exercise is designed to enhance asset and personnel dispersal capability, strengthen regional partnerships and prepare for flexible response execution throughout CENTCOM. It will serve as a way for AFCENT to validate procedures for rapid movement of personnel and aircraft; dispersed operations at contingency locations; logistics sustainment with a minimal footprint; and integrated, multi-national command and control over a large area of operations.”
AFCENT said the training will include US forces spreading out to a number of contingency sites, where they will “deploy teams to multiple contingency locations and validate rapid set-up, launch and recovery procedures with small, efficient support packages,” while also stressing that all actions will be carried out “with host-nation approval and in close coordination with civil and military aviation authorities, emphasizing safety, precision and respect for sovereignty.”
The exercise follows an announcement made a day earlier by the United States Central Command that the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, along with its escorting vessels, had reached the Middle East.
With the carrier strike group now in theater, the United States has significantly expanded its offensive and defensive capabilities in the region, providing President Donald Trump with additional military options as Iran’s regime faces international scrutiny over the killing of protesters.
Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania on Tuesday publicly pressed President Donald Trump to dismiss Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, accusing her of mishandling immigration enforcement actions tied to recent events in Minnesota.
In a post on X, the Democratic senator demanded Noem’s immediate removal, directly addressing the president and issuing a warning about repeating past leadership decisions. “.@POTUS @realDonaldTrump: I make a direct appeal to immediately fire @Sec_Noem,” Fetterman wrote, cautioning Trump not to repeat what he described as “the mistake President Biden made” by retaining what he called a “grossly incompetent” DHS secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, during deadly and controversial federal operations.
Fetterman’s remarks come as the national immigration debate intensifies following two fatal shootings involving federal agents in Minneapolis, including the death of Alex Pretti. The incidents coincided with the deployment of thousands of ICE, Border Patrol, and other DHS personnel under what the department has labeled “Operation Metro Surge,” which DHS has described as the largest immigration enforcement action ever undertaken.
The senator’s call to fire Noem reflects broader criticism from progressive lawmakers and advocacy groups. In recent days, several on the left have demanded her resignation or impeachment, along with disciplinary action against senior Border Patrol officials, after the shootings triggered protests across Minnesota and in other states.
Opponents of Noem contend that she has aggressively enforced federal immigration policies long opposed by Democrats but never overturned by legislation. They argue that such operations, particularly in sanctuary jurisdictions, should be reevaluated rather than escalated, warning that the current approach risks further unrest.
Republicans and conservative voices counter that congressional Republicans and GOP leaders at the state level have largely supported the enforcement surge. They argue that sanctuary policies expose federal agents to greater danger and leave the federal government with little choice but to take decisive action.
President Trump has continued to defend Noem and DHS efforts aimed at apprehending violent criminal aliens, but he is facing pressure from multiple sides. While some Republicans support the enforcement push, others have raised concerns about the optics and consequences of the Minneapolis operations and have called for independent reviews to assess tactics and accountability.
At the same time, the White House has indicated that it is reassessing DHS priorities following internal evaluations, with an emphasis on border security and criminal enforcement moving forward.
Despite Fetterman’s public demand that Noem be fired, she is expected to remain in her post for now, though her leadership is under intense scrutiny as criticism grows over her forceful enforcement strategy and public comments that have fueled opposition.
{Matzav.com}
Israeli journalist Amit Segal has disclosed previously unknown information about the intelligence and operational steps that ultimately led to the recovery of the body of fallen Israel Police officer Ran Gvili, Arutz Sheva reports.
According to the report, about three months ago IDF troops approached the head of the Southern Command seeking approval to extend the so-called Yellow Line to cover a Muslim cemetery where Gvili was later determined to have been buried. The soldiers argued that the area posed a serious operational threat to Israeli forces, and the request was approved.
At that stage, forces carried out activity inside the cemetery without any indication that Gvili might be buried there. While operating in the area, troops uncovered a terror tunnel running beneath the cemetery and subsequently destroyed it.
In the weeks that followed, updated intelligence evaluations increasingly pointed to the likelihood that Ran Gvili had indeed been buried at that location. After a series of coordination and planning measures, authorization was granted for an operation to recover his remains.
On Monday night, the Israel Security Agency revealed that roughly a month earlier, during a separate operation in southern Gaza City, Israeli forces detained a Palestinian Islamic Jihad operative. The suspect had taken part in combat activity against Israeli forces during the war and was brought in for questioning.
During his interrogation, the operative confessed to having been involved in moving Ran Gvili’s body between several sites and provided the names of others who knew where the burial had taken place. The intelligence obtained strengthened assessments that Gvili was buried in the al-Batsh cemetery in the northern Gaza Strip.
The ISA said that this intelligence directly enabled the recovery mission. As part of the operation, forces opened more than 700 graves and examined over 250 bodies before locating Ran. He was found inside a Shifa Hospital body bag, still wearing his police uniform, with his shoes and belt intact.
{Matzav.com}
