Riot Police Clash with Anti-ICE Protesters in LA after Immigration Raids
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Riot police clashed with anti-ICE demonstrators in downtown Los Angeles on Friday evening following a wave of federal immigration raids that reportedly led to dozens of arrests citywide.
Helmeted officers in riot gear confronted protesters after nightfall, as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) personnel formed lines wielding batons and apparent tear gas rifles.
Authorities ordered the crowds to disperse, and tensions escalated when some demonstrators threw chunks of concrete.
Police responded with volleys of tear gas, pepper spray, and flash-bang rounds.
No immediate arrests were confirmed.
LAPD spokesperson Drake Madison said officers declared an unlawful assembly, making anyone who failed to leave subject to arrest.
Earlier, news footage showed unmarked military-style vehicles and vans carrying uniformed federal agents moving through city streets.
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) targeted multiple locations, including a Home Depot in the Westlake District, a store in the Fashion District, and a clothing warehouse in South Los Angeles, according to City News Service (CNS).
CNS and other local media reported that dozens were taken into custody in the latest series of immigration sweeps under President Donald Trump's crackdown on undocumented migrants.
The LAPD was not involved in the federal raids.
Officers were deployed after protesters spray-painted anti-ICE slogans on a federal courthouse and gathered near a jail believed to house detainees.
Demonstrations also broke out earlier at raid sites.
David Huerta, president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) of California, was detained and injured during one of the actions, according to a union statement.
SEIU said Huerta was arrested "while exercising his First Amendment right to observe and document law enforcement activity."
No information was provided on the nature of his injury or whether charges were filed.
ICE did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on Huerta or the enforcement actions.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass condemned the raids, stating, "these tactics sow terror in our communities and disrupt basic principles of safety in our city."
