Donald Trump threatened to use the Insurrection Act in Minnesota on Thursday.Image: keystone
Jan 15, 2026, 3:31 p.mJanuary 15, 2026, 3:45 p.m
US President Donald Trump threatened to use the Insurrection Act on Thursday (Insurrection Act) in Minnesota. He is therefore considering deploying US troops in Minneapolis to suppress ongoing protests against ICE officers and the tightening of immigration laws.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Thursday, Trump wrote:
“If Minnesota’s corrupt politicians do not follow the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the patriots at ICE who are just trying to do their job, I will use the INSURRECTION ACT, as many presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to this farce unfolding in this once-great state.”
What the law allows in exceptional cases
The Insurrection Act allows a US president to use the military on US soil under exceptional circumstances. Through domestic arrests and searches, the military can suppress insurrections, riots or armed rebellions. Under normal circumstances this is not allowed in the USA.
When there were protests against his migration policy in Los Angeles in the summer and Trump sent thousands of soldiers to the West Coast metropolis, he did not rule out applying the law.
A week after an ICE officer fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis, a federal officer recently fired a shot there again, injuring a man. The Department of Homeland Security reported on X about an escalated traffic stop on Wednesday evening (local time). The incident further inflamed the already tense mood in the city. US media reported clashes between protesters and law enforcement officers that lasted for hours. (hkl, with material from sda/dpa)