Worker Dies after US Immigration Raid on California Farm
President Donald Trump, meanwhile, called demonstrators involved in attacks on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents "slimeballs" and said they should be arrested, reported AFP.
In another development, a district judge ordered a halt to "roving patrols" in Los Angeles by federal agents who were detaining suspected undocumented migrants without probable cause and denying them due process.
District Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong ordered an end to the arrests, which she said were being made "based upon race alone," on whether a person was speaking Spanish or English with an accent or because of their place of work and ordered them stopped.
Trump's remarks and the court order come a day after a chaotic raid on a cannabis plantation in Ventura County some 56 miles (90 kilometers) from Los Angeles left one farm worker critically injured.
The United Farm Workers labor union said in a post on X on Friday that the worker had "died of injuries they sustained as a result of yesterday's immigration enforcement action."
Tricia McLaughlin, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokeswoman, said the man who died was never in custody.
"Although he was not being pursued by law enforcement, this individual climbed up to the roof of a green house and fell 30 feet (10 meters)," McLaughlin said. "(Customs and Border Patrol) immediately called a medivac to the scene to get him care as quickly as possible."
The DHS said 200 undocumented migrants were arrested during raids on marijuana growing sites in Carpinteria and Camarillo on Thursday and 10 children were rescued "from potential exploitation, forced labor, and human trafficking."
Glass House Brands, which owns the farms, said in a statement that it has "never knowingly violated applicable hiring practices and does not and has never employed minors."
DHS said more than 500 "rioters" had attempted to disrupt the operation and four US citizens are facing charges for assaulting or resisting officers.
Tear gas was used against the protestors, some of whom were seen in television footage throwing projectiles at law enforcement vehicles.
The department said immigration agency vehicles were damaged and a $50,000 reward was being offered for the arrest of an individual who allegedly fired a gun at law enforcement officers.
Showdown
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said he had watched footage of "thugs" throwing rocks and bricks at ICE vehicles, causing "tremendous damage."
Trump said he was authorizing law enforcement officers who are "on the receiving end of thrown rocks, bricks, or any other form of assault, to stop their car, and arrest these SLIMEBALLS, using whatever means is necessary to do so."
"I am giving Total Authorization for ICE to protect itself, just like they protect the Public," he said.
Trump, who campaigned on a pledge to deport millions of migrants, has been involved in a showdown over immigration enforcement with Democratic-ruled California for weeks.
The Republican president sent thousands of National Guard troops to Los Angeles last month to quell protests against roundups of undocumented migrants by federal agents.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has said the troops were not necessary to address the mostly peaceful protests, but his legal efforts to have them removed have failed so far.
The cannabis farm in Camarillo was calm during a visit by an AFP reporter on Friday as workers waited in line to collect their belongings and paychecks.
"We've been here since six this morning asking questions but they're not giving us any information," said Saul Munoz, a 43-year-old Colombian whose son was detained on Thursday.
"I just want to know how he's doing," Munoz said. "Bring him back to me and if it's time for us to leave, we'll leave.
"The truth is the American dream is no longer really the American dream."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Arabiya
an hour ago
- Al Arabiya
US customs duties top $100 billion for first time in a fiscal year
US customs duty collections surged again in June as President Donald Trump's tariffs gained steam, topping $100 billion for the first time during a fiscal year and helping to produce a surprise $27 billion budget surplus for the month, the Treasury Department reported on Friday. The budget data showed that tariffs are starting to build into a significant revenue contributor for the federal government, with customs duties in June hitting new records, quadrupling to $27.2 billion on a gross basis and $26.6 billion on a net basis after refunds. The budget results are likely to reinforce Trump's view of tariffs as a lucrative revenue source and as a hammer to enforce non-trade foreign policy. He said on Tuesday that 'the big money' would start to flow in after he imposes higher 'reciprocal' tariffs on US trading partners on August 1. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on X that the results show the US 'reaping the rewards' from Trump's tariff agenda. 'As President Trump works hard to take back our nation's economic sovereignty, today's Monthly Treasury Statement is demonstrating record customs duties – and with no inflation!' Bessent said. For the first nine months of fiscal 2025, the customs take reached records of $113.3 billion on a gross basis and $108 billion on a net basis, nearly double the prior-year collections. The government's fiscal year ends on Sept. 30. Based on those results, tariffs have now grown into the fourth-largest revenue source for the federal government, behind individual withheld receipts at $2.683 trillion for the fiscal year, non-withheld individual receipts at $965 billion and corporate taxes at $392 billion. In the space of roughly four months, tariffs as a share of federal revenue have more than doubled to around 5 percent from about 2 percent historically. The June budget surplus represented a turnaround from the $71 billion deficit in June 2024. The new tariff-related revenue helped boost total budget receipts last month by 13 percent, or $60 billion, to $526 billion, a record for that month, the Treasury said. Outlays in June fell 7 percent, or $38 billion, to $499 billion. But adjusting for calendar shifts of some revenue and benefit payments, it said there would have been a budget deficit of $70 billion in June along with a year-ago adjusted deficit of $143 billion. The overall year-to-date deficit, however, increased 5 percent, or $64 billion, to $1.337 trillion, as outlays rose for health care programs, Social Security retirement benefits, defense spending, debt interest and the Department of Homeland Security, the Treasury said. Receipts for the first nine months of the fiscal year rose 7 percent, or $254 billion, to a record $4.008 trillion, driven in part by withheld taxes from higher employment and wages, while outlays grew 6 percent, or $318 billion, to a record $5.346 trillion. The Treasury's interest costs on the national debt continued to grow, exceeding all other individual outlays at $921 billion for the first nine months of the fiscal year, up 6 percent, or $53 billion, from the year-ago period. But the Treasury's weighted average interest rate largely had stabilized at 3.3 percent at the end of June, up two basis points from a year ago, a Treasury official said. Bigger flow Bessent earlier this week suggested a steeper ramp-up in tariff collections, telling a cabinet meeting that calendar-year 2025 collections could grow to $300 billion by the end of December. At the June run rate, gross customs collections would hit $276.5 billion in six months' time, which means reaching Bessent's target would require some increases. Ernie Tedeschi, economics director of the Budget Lab at Yale University, said it may take more time for the tariff revenue to fully ramp up because businesses and consumers have sought to front run the duties by buying ahead. Once that effect fades and Trump implements higher 'reciprocal tariff' rates after an August 1 deadline, the Treasury may collect an extra $10 billion in tariffs per month, bringing the total to $37 billion, he said. 'I think there's a significant we get addicted to tariff revenue,' said Tedeschi, who served as a White House economic adviser during the Biden administration. He added that tariff income could fade over time as businesses and consumers adjust their behavior. But Trump this week has ratcheted up his tariff actions, announcing 50 percent levies on copper imports and goods from Brazil and a 35 percent tariff on Canadian goods, all due to start on August 1. The Trump administration is preparing more sector-based tariffs on semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.
Al Arabiya
2 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Furor over Epstein files sparks clash between Bondi and Bongino at the Justice Department
The Justice Department and FBI are struggling to contain the fallout and appease the demands of far-right conservative personalities and influential members of President Donald Trump's base after the administration's decision this week to withhold records from the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking investigation. The move, which included the acknowledgment that one particular sought-after document never existed in the first place, sparked a contentious conversation between Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino at the White House earlier this week that threatened to permanently shatter relations between the two officials and centered in part on a news story that described divisions between the FBI and the Justice Department. The cascade of disappointment and disbelief arising from the refusal to disclose additional, much-hyped records from the Epstein investigation underscores the struggles of FBI and Justice Department leaders to resolve the conspiracy theories and amped-up expectations that they themselves had stoked with claims of a cover-up and hidden evidence. Infuriated by the failure of officials to unlock, as promised, the secrets of the so-called 'deep state,' Trump supporters on the far right have grown restless and even demanded change at the top. Tensions that simmered for months boiled over on Monday when the Justice Department and FBI issued a two-page statement saying that they had concluded that Epstein did not possess a 'client list,' even though Bondi had intimated in February that such a document was sitting on her desk, and had decided against releasing any additional records from the investigation. The department did disclose a video meant to prove that Epstein killed himself in jail, but even that raised the eyebrows of conspiracy theorists because of a missing minute in the recording. It was hardly the first time that Trump administration officials have failed to fulfill their pledge to deliver the evidence that supporters had come to expect. In February, conservative influencers were invited to the White House and provided with binders marked 'The Epstein Files: Phase 1' and 'Declassified." But the binders contained information that had largely already been in the public domain. Afterward, Bondi said an FBI 'source' informed her of the existence of thousands of pages of previously undisclosed documents and ordered the bureau to provide the 'full and complete Epstein files.' She later said officials were poring over a 'truckload' of previously withheld evidence she said had been handed over by the FBI. But after a months-long review of evidence in the government's possession, the Justice Department determined in the memo Monday that no 'further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.' The department noted that much of the material was placed under seal by a court to protect victims, and 'only a fraction' of it 'would have been aired publicly had Epstein gone to trial.' The Trump administration had hoped that that statement would be the final word on the saga, with Trump chiding a reporter who asked Bondi about the Epstein case at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday. But Bondi and Bongino had a tense exchange the following day at the White House, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a private conversation. Part of the clash centered on a story from the news organization NewsNation that cited a 'source close to the White House' as saying the FBI would have released the Epstein files months ago if it could have done so on its own. The story included statements from Bondi, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel refuting the premise, but not Bongino. The news publication Axios was first to describe the conversation. Blanche sought to stem the fallout Friday with a social media post in which he said he had worked closely with Patel and Bongino on the Epstein matter and the joint memo. 'All of us signed off on the contents of the memo and the conclusions stated in the memo. The suggestion by anyone that there was any daylight between the FBI and DOJ leadership on this memo's composition and release is patently false,' he wrote on X. Also Friday, far-right activist Laura Loomer, who is close to Trump, posted on X that she was told that Bongino was 'seriously thinking about resigning' and had taken the day off to contemplate his future. Bongino is normally an active presence on social media but has been silent since Wednesday. The FBI did not respond to a request seeking comment, and the White House sought in a statement to minimize any tensions. 'President Trump has assembled a highly qualified and experienced law and order team dedicated to protecting Americans, holding criminals accountable, and delivering justice to victims,' said spokesman Harrison Fields. 'This work is being carried out seamlessly and with unity. Any attempt to sow division within this team is baseless and distracts from the real progress being made in restoring public safety and pursuing justice for all.'
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Iran Attack on Qatar Air Base Hit Geodesic Dome Used for US Communications, Satellite Photos Show
An Iranian attack on an air base in Qatar that's key to the US military hit a geodesic dome housing equipment used by the Americans for secure communications, satellite images analyzed Friday by The Associated Press show. Hours after the publication of this AP report, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell acknowledged that an Iranian ballistic missile had hit the dome. Qatar did not respond to requests for comment about the damage. The Iranian attack on Al Udeid Air Base outside of Doha, Qatar's capital, on June 23 came as a response to the American bombing of three nuclear sites in Iran — and provided Iran a way to retaliate that quickly led to a ceasefire brokered by US President Donald Trump ending the 12-day Iran-Israel war. The Iranian attack otherwise did little damage — likely because of the fact that the US evacuated its aircraft from the base, which is home to the forward headquarters of the US military's Central Command, before the attack. Trump also has said that Iran signaled when and how it would retaliate, allowing American and Qatari air defense to be ready for the attack, which briefly disrupted air travel in the Middle East, but otherwise didn't tip over into the regional war long feared by analysts. Images show burn marks, dome gone after attack Satellite images from Planet Labs PBC show the geodesic dome visible at the Al Udeid Air Base on the morning of June 23, just hours before the attack. The US Air Force's 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, which operates out of the base, announced in 2016 the installation of the $15 million piece of equipment, known as a modernized enterprise terminal. Photos show a satellite dish inside of the dome, known as a radome. Images taken June 25 and every day subsequently show the dome is gone, with some damage visible on a nearby building. The rest of the base appears largely untouched in the images.
