New York protests erupt as Trump administration defends ICE shooting

Hundreds of protesters gathered in New York City on Friday following a shooting involving US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers that wounded a Dominican man in the Bronx. The incident has intensified tensions between Democratic Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the administration of President Donald Trump over federal immigration enforcement.

Oscar Bergal, 28, was shot in the neck during an ICE operation on Thursday. A five-year-old child who was inside his vehicle at the time was physically unharmed, according to the initial reports. The shooting triggered a sharp political response from Mamdani, who posted the words "Abolish ICE" on X. The slogan is widely used by opponents of Trump's immigration crackdown, who have called for the federal agency to be dismantled.

US Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin strongly criticized the mayor's statement, arguing that it could increase hostility toward immigration officers. "Mayor, if you abolish ICE, who's going to take criminals off the streets of your own town?" Mullin said. “Who's going to take the murderers and the thieves and the gangbangers?” Mullin also described Mamdani's remarks as "dangerous and incite hostility."

Hundreds protest against ICE in Manhattan

An AFP journalist reported seeing hundreds of demonstrators marching across several blocks in Manhattan on Friday, chanting slogans including "No hate, no fear, immigrants are welcome here" and “No ICE.” New York City, a Democratic stronghold, is among several US cities that restrict local police from assisting federal authorities with immigration enforcement. Following Thursday's shooting, Mamdani said he was seeking a conversation with Trump and intended to demand the withdrawal of federal immigration agents from the city. The confrontation could test the relationship between the two leaders, which had appeared surprisingly cordial despite their political differences.

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Video raises questions about the Bronx shooting

Video footage of the incident, shared by US media on Friday, appears to show a plainclothes federal agent approaching a silver car with a firearm drawn. The vehicle briefly reverses as the agent strikes the driver's-side window. A second plainclothes officer then draws a weapon and points it toward the driver as the car moves forward and out of view.

The vehicle appears to collide with the side of another passing vehicle before disappearing from the footage. The video has drawn attention to the circumstances surrounding the shooting. However, the footage alone does not establish every detail of the encounter or independently resolve the competing accounts provided by officials.

Homeland security officials defend ICE officers

Mullin said Bergal had an extensive criminal history and was attempting to evade arrest during the operation. "He came to this country legally a few years ago, and ever since he's come in, he's committed crime and crime after crime," the Homeland Security secretary said. Mullin added that ICE officers did not know a child was inside the vehicle when they opened fire. Marcos Charles, a senior ICE official, said Bergal had "refused lawful orders to exit his vehicle."

Charles alleged that the driver accelerated and struck two government vehicles before moving toward other officers. "He then accelerated his vehicle, smashing into two of our government ICE vehicles, and then weaponized his vehicle and proceeded to accelerate, going towards other officers," Charles said. "Our officers, using their training, and believing that their life and the lives of their partners and general public were in danger, used their training and fired weapons," he said. The statements represent the federal authorities' account of the incident. Further evidence and independent investigation would be needed to establish the full sequence of events.

ICE shooting incidents fuel wider immigration debate

The Bronx shooting comes amid growing scrutiny of ICE operations and the use of force by federal immigration agents. Officers have frequently operated in civilian clothing, sometimes with their faces covered, during immigration enforcement actions. Several other shootings involving immigration or federal agents have drawn national attention during Trump's second term.

In March 2025, 23-year-old Ruben Ray Martinez was shot by ICE in an incident that the Texas Tribune described as the first known killing of an American by immigration agents during Trump's second term. In another case, Mexican national Lorenzo Salgado died in July after being shot by an ICE officer in Houston, Texas. Two American citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were also shot and killed by federal immigration agents in separate incidents in Minnesota during an enforcement crackdown targeting undocumented migrants earlier this year.

These incidents have intensified debate over federal immigration policy, law enforcement accountability and the use of deadly force during immigration operations. The latest shooting in New York has added to those tensions, bringing protesters onto Manhattan's streets and deepening the political dispute between city officials and the Trump administration. As questions remain about the circumstances of Bergal's shooting, the incident is likely to fuel further calls for scrutiny of ICE's tactics and the federal government's immigration enforcement strategy.