The family of a woman shot dead by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis has issued a powerful call for justice, urging the public to centre conversations on "humanity, empathy, and care". Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent on 7 January.
A Plea for Empathy Amidst Grief
In a statement, relatives of Good, most of whom are from her late husband's family, expressed their desire for accountability. They framed their appeal around the hope that their "unimaginable loss" would spark meaningful reform to prevent other families from enduring similar trauma. While demanding justice, they explicitly asked for public discourse to be rooted in compassion for those most directly affected.
This tragic incident has intensified the political clash between Minnesota state authorities and the federal government over immigration enforcement. Minnesota's Attorney General, Keith Ellison, announced a lawsuit yesterday seeking to halt the surge of ICE agents deployed to the state. Ellison condemned the operation, stating, "The deployment of thousands of armed DHS agents to Minnesota has done our state serious harm. This is in essence a federal invasion."
Federal Response and Wider Political Clashes
The lawsuit follows a pledge on Sunday from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to send "hundreds more" federal agents to the city. The situation has been marked by tension, including clashes where Border Patrol agents deployed teargas in a residential neighbourhood earlier this week.
In a separate international development, former President Donald Trump declared that any country trading with Iran would face a 25% tariff on commerce with the United States. The threat comes as Washington considers its response to significant anti-government protests in Iran. A Norway-based NGO reports at least 648 people have been killed in the regime's crackdown, with over 10,600 arrests cited by a US-based monitoring group.
Ex-Fed Chairs Unite Against "Unprecedented" Attack
Domestically, every living former Federal Reserve chair has condemned what they call an "unprecedented" attempt to weaken the central bank's independence. This follows the opening of a criminal investigation by the Department of Justice into the sitting chair, Jerome Powell.
In a joint statement, ex-chairs Alan Greenspan, Ben Bernanke, and Janet Yellen warned that such prosecutorial attacks have led to "highly negative consequences" in other nations and have "no place" in the US. They argued the move mirrored monetary policy manipulation in "emerging markets with weak institutions". Trump has sought to distance himself from the probe, telling NBC News, "I don't know anything about it," despite his long-standing criticism of Powell's interest rate policy.
In other news: A coalition of artists, doctors, and human rights leaders has called for an end to Israel's "systematic attacks" on Gaza hospitals. Ofcom has launched a formal investigation into Elon Musk's X platform over its AI tool manipulating images. Furthermore, experts suggest Trump's move to withdraw the US from the key UN climate treaty may be illegal, potentially consuming over 13% of the world's remaining carbon budget to limit warming to 1.5C.
