Federal agents deployed rubber bullets, tear gas and flash bangs to quell a crowd of protestors who swarmed a Portland ICE facility on Wednesday night.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, rioters tried to block law enforcement vehicles from entering and exiting an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Portland, Oregon, which spiraled into a several-hour showdown between protestors and federal agents.
Last night, Portland rioters violently targeted federal law enforcement— 250 rioters launched fireworks, shined lasers in officers’ eyes to temporarily blind them, and stormed an ICE field office. Ultimately, five individuals were arrested on various charges including assault on… pic.twitter.com/bCaMA9yKai
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) June 19, 2025
As summer heats up, it seems the violence in Portland is too — reminiscent of the summer of 2020. The sanctuary city became a hotbed for similar protests and clashes with police, ostensibly precipitated by the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020.
Wednesday’s violence was the latest in a series of anti-ICE protests outside the South Portland facility — now defaced with graffiti and anti-ICE slurs and boarded up windows — where demonstrators have gathered repeatedly over the past week and a half, KPTV FOX 12 reported.
The clashes between rioters and police in Portland erupted as anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles spread across the country. And now California’s law enforcement leaders are sounding the alarm, pleading for help amid officer shortages and an unprecedented riot “onslaught” in several areas.
In response to the protests, over 640 highway patrol officers have been sent to Los Angeles. Additionally, nearly 400 additional California Highway Patrol Special Response Team officers have been deployed to aid law enforcement.
“The persons that are down there participating in their First Amendment rights are quickly overtaken by these bad actors that are definitely in the crowd,” Jake Johnson, president of the California Association of Highway Patrolmen (CAHP), told Fox News Digital in an article posted early Thursday. “There’s a significant amount of them in the crowd, and it really takes over the peaceful protests that there are hundreds of people participating in. It really turns these into bad situations where now we have to decide who’s a peaceful protester and who is a bad actor.”
Regarding Portland’s latest night of unrest, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) posted a statement and video footage on X Thursday morning, saying the rioters had “launched fireworks, shined lasers in officers’ eyes to temporarily blind them, and stormed an ICE field office.”
Five individuals were arrested on various charges including assault on federal law enforcement, DHS said, adding “Our officers are facing a 413% increase in assaults against them as they put their lives on the line to arrest murderers, rapists, and gang members.”
“Secretary Noem’s message to the rioters is clear: you will not stop us or slow us down,” the post stated. “ICE and our federal law enforcement partners will continue to enforce the law. And if you lay a hand on a law enforcement officer, you will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Earlier Wednesday, a crowd of mostly masked protesters, many dressed in black and some wearing Palestinian keffiyehs scarves, had marched on the streets near the facility. Keffiyehs are often associated with left-wing protest movements, Fox News Digital reported.
While it was still daylight, Turning Point USA’s Frontlines posted a video on X showing a group of agitators trying to prevent a Homeland Security caravan from entering the ICE building.
HAPPENING NOW: Antifa militants are trying to prevent a Homeland Security caravan from entering the Portland ICE building. Dozens of federal agents are now ordering the rowdy mob to leave or stay off their property. @choeshow|@TPUSA pic.twitter.com/AVjAdC59ZU
— FRONTLINES (@FrontlinesTPUSA) June 19, 2025
“HAPPENING NOW: Antifa militants are trying to prevent a Homeland Security caravan from entering the Portland ICE building. Dozens of federal agents are now ordering the rowdy mob to leave or stay off their property.”
Later on, hundreds gathered outside of the building in an attempt to block the entrance, “aggressively shouting at federal officers guarding the building,” according to Frontlines.
Frontlines continued to post updates on X: “NEW: If there was any doubt, this is indeed an Antifa direct action outside the Portland ICE building. The militants are proudly flying their flags and leaving their mark.”
Hours later, after dark, Frontlines reported that Homeland Security gave the protestors multiple warnings to disperse from the Portland ICE building.
The protestors rolled in a dumpster near the front of the ICE building, prompting a rooftop sniper to fire non-lethal blast balls at the crowd. The feds eventually wheeled away the dumpster, prompting boos from the antifa rioters as they retreated.
Federal agents issued multiple warnings to disperse, but the protesters refused to leave. In another video, it shows federal agents moving in and using tear gas and non-lethal blast balls to disperse the crowd.
“HAPPENING NOW: Absolute shock and awe campaign by Homeland Security in Portland. Antifa is getting smoked out and crushed outside the ICE building!”
The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) said it arrested two people during the broader demonstration, KPTV FOX 12 reported.
Eduardo Diaz, 22, was cited for unlawfully directing a laser pointer at federal officers and later booked on a U.S. Marshal’s hold, while Mariana Rivera-Loza, 19, was arrested for criminal trespass near the Portland ICE facility after ignoring multiple warnings and carrying a shield.
On Saturday, multiple people in Portland were arrested after planned protests descended into chaos and violence near the ICE facility and left four officers injured, Fox News Digital reported.
Saturday’s riot broke out hours after a “No Kings” protest at 1 p.m., which officials labeled a “large-scale free speech gathering” with tens of thousands of people marching in demonstration. The Portland Police Bureau eventually declared it a riot.
In total, PPB has made 20 arrests related to incidents at the ICE building since last Wednesday, June 11, when protests at the site began, KPTV reported.
Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital on Saturday that a mob launched fireworks, smoke grenades and threw rocks at federal law enforcement as they broke glass and forcibly entered the ICE facility, though federal agents did secure the facility.
