US Democratic congresswoman Ilhan Omar was targeted during a speech late Tuesday by a man who sprayed an unidentified liquid at her from a syringe before being tackled by security guards, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.The man was led out of the premises as Omar — a frequent target of attacks by President Donald Trump — continued her speech, saying “we will stay resilient in the face of whatever they might throw on us.” The man was taken into custody by Minneapolis police, her office said.The incident took place during a town hall in the US city of Minneapolis, where two American citizens have been killed this month in a violent anti-immigration crackdown with thousands of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, provoking growing unrest.Omar had just finished calling for the Trump administration to reverse its current course when the attack occurred.”ICE cannot be reformed, it cannot be rehabilitated. We must abolish ICE for good,” Omar said, to applause. “And (Department of Homeland Security) Secretary Kristi Noem must resign or face impeachment.”After Omar uttered those words, a man sprang up from the front row, made a remark and sprayed the congresswoman, as security leapt to grab him. Omar raised a fist and stepped toward the attacker before returning to the podium. After uttering a few expletives, and against her team’s vocal concerns that she should not continue, the congresswoman took the microphone.”Here’s the reality that people like this ugly man don’t understand: We are Minnesota strong. And we will stay resilient in the face of whatever they might throw on us,” Omar said.Earlier Tuesday, Trump blasted Omar and Somalia during a speech in Iowa, saying the Mogadishu-born congresswoman “comes from a country that’s a disaster.”Trump has ordered 143 strikes against Somalia in his second term, according to US think tank New America, and has pulled back diplomatic relations, including recently stopping humanitarian aid.

A life-threatening freeze is gripping large swaths of the United States after a monster storm caused at least 38 deaths from the Deep South to the Northeast, knocked out power to hundreds of thousands and sent air travel into chaos.Another Arctic blast expected this weekend could deliver fresh misery for more than 100 million Americans, with record low temperatures and another major storm threatening — even as municipalities are digging out from deep piles of snow and ice.Here’s what to know.- Dozens dead -The storm was linked to more than three dozen deaths, according to a compilation of state government and local media reports, with causes including hypothermia as well as accidents related to traffic, sledding, all-terrain vehicles and snowplows.Three Texas siblings age six to nine died Monday after falling through ice on a pond north of Dallas, authorities said.The storm toll is expected to climb after New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday at least 10 New Yorkers who died had been found outdoors in extreme cold, though whether all the deaths were from hypothermia has yet to be determined.In Bangor, Maine, seven people were killed when a small plane crashed while attempting to take off during a snowstorm, the Federal Aviation Administration said.Tennessee, Texas, Mississippi and Louisiana were badly impacted by power outages, with nearly half a million homes and businesses still without electricity as of Tuesday night, according to tracking site Poweroutage.com.Air travel was also severely disrupted. More than 24,500 US flights, a staggering number, were canceled between Saturday and Tuesday as the storm paralyzed transportation across the country, according to website FlightAware.- Heavy snowfall – The heaviest snowfall of 31 inches (79 centimeters) occurred in Bonito Falls, New Mexico on the western edge of the colossal storm — followed by East Napanoch in upstate New York, where 30 inches fell, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). In Boston, residents were digging out Tuesday after the Massachusetts metropolis got walloped by more than 23 inches of snow.Many of the hardest-hit areas were in the South, where authorities are less accustomed — and often less equipped — to deal with severe winter weather.In the Gulf Coast state of Mississippi, for example, several towns were covered in thick and treacherous ice which downed power lines and trees, and made roads impassable.- More to come -The NWS warns that much of the northern half of the country will remain continuously below freezing through February 1, with another blast of Arctic air expected to bring “the coldest temperature seen in several years for some places and the longest duration of cold in decades.”It said regions as far south as Florida should prepare for “hard freezes.”At the same time, a potentially significant winter storm could spill out of Canada along the East Coast, spreading widespread precipitation as a low-pressure system collides with frigid air. Forecasters say it is still too early to determine the storm’s exact track, or whether it will fall as rain or snow.- Climate change -It may sound counterintuitive, but a growing body of research suggests climate change could be playing a role in disruptions to the polar vortex — a vast region of cold, low-pressure air that normally circulates high above the Arctic.Scientists advancing this theory argue that uneven Arctic warming across Europe and Asia can amplify large atmospheric waves, making it more likely for the polar vortex to wobble and spill south over North America.The science, however, remains contested, and researchers caution that natural climate variability also plays a role.

A branch of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will help with security for the Winter Olympics in Italy, it confirmed Tuesday, sparking anger and warnings they were not welcome.Reports had been circulating for days that the agency embroiled in an often brutal immigration crackdown in the United States could be involved in US security measures for the February 6-22 Games in northern Italy.In a statement to AFP, ICE said: “At the Olympics, ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) is supporting the US Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service and host nation to vet and mitigate risks from transnational criminal organisations.”All security operations remain under Italian authority.”The State Department said that the HSI has in the past taken part in other Olympics events.”As in previous Olympic events, multiple federal agencies are supporting the Diplomatic Security Service, including Homeland Security Investigations, ICE’s investigative component,” a State Department spokesperson said.  “For the Olympics, the United States is preparing an operations room at its consulate in Milan where representatives from U.S. agencies potentially interested in the event will be present,” Italian Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said in a statement after a meeting with the US ambassador in Rome. “Experts from the Department of Homeland Security will also be in this same room,” he added.According to Piantedosi, these experts are present “in more than 50 countries and have been in Italy for years as well,” emphasising that “security operations within the country are the sole responsibility of the Italian authorities”. Piantedosi specified that approximately 6,000 law enforcement personnel would be deployed, along with the use of drones and other aerial surveillance equipment, to ensure security at the Games.According to the ICE website, the HSI investigates global threats, including the illegal movement of people, goods, money, contraband, weapons and sensitive technology into, out of, and through the United States. ICE made clear its operations in Italy were separate from the domestic immigration crackdown, which is being carried out by the Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) department.”Obviously, ICE does not conduct immigration enforcement operations in foreign countries,” it said.- Vance and Rubio in Milan -The protection of US citizens during Olympic Games overseas is led by the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS).Yet the outrage over ICE immigration operations in the United States is shared among many in Italy, following the deaths of two civilians during an immigration crackdown in Minneapolis.The leftist mayor of Milan, which is hosting several Olympic events, said ICE was “not welcome”.”This is a militia that kills. It’s clear that they are not welcome in Milan, there’s no doubt about it, Giuseppe Sala told RTL 102.5 radio.”Can’t we just say no to (US President Donald) Trump for once?”Alessandro Zan, a member of the European Parliament for the centre-left Democratic Party, condemned it as “unacceptable”.”In Italy, we don’t want those who trample on human rights and act outside of any democratic control,” he wrote on X.Italian authorities initially denied the presence of ICE and then sought to downplay any role, suggesting they would help only in security for the US delegation.US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are attending the opening ceremony in Milan on February 6.Giovanni Malago, president of the Milan-Cortina organising committee, said he believed ICE agents would be present “for the high-ranking US government officials” and have “nothing to do with the Games’ security aspects”.”It’s not about the Olympics, but about individuals,” he said.The International Olympic Committee, when contacted by AFP, replied that “security at the Olympic Games is the responsibility of the authorities of the host country, who work closely with the participating delegations”.”We kindly refer you to the USOPC (the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee)”, it said. 

Celebrities from movie stars to pop singers are speaking up with calls to action against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids after two Americans were shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis.From red-carpet premieres to social media, the usually politics-averse celebrity crowd have been swept up in the fray after the shooting death of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse, on Saturday. Below are some of the appeals for action by celebrities expressing their discontent with President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown:- Pedro Pascal -The Chilean-American actor shared a series of posts on his Instagram, calling for a national strike to protest the killings and demanding more transparency from the federal government on the actions of ICE agents. “Truth is a line of demarcation between a democratic government and authoritarian regime,” Pascal wrote, as he paid tribute to Pretti and another US citizen killed in Minneapolis this month, 37-year-old Renee Good. “The American people deserve to know what happened,” he added.- Jamie Lee Curtis -Oscar-winning actress Jamie Lee Curtis also joined the call for national protests against ICE raids. “THESE WERE AMERICANS! SHOT BY OUR GOVERNMENT!” she wrote in a post on Sunday accompanied by drawings of Pretti’s and Good’s faces. On Tuesday, she shared a photo of Minneapolis and captioned it: “I BELIEVE IN US!”- Martha Stewart – The businesswoman behind a domestic goods empire took to her Instagram to speak out after she was encouraged by her 14-year-old granddaughter, she said. “I am disheartened and sad each and every day… that we are told immigrants, which most of us are or descended from are unwelcome,” wrote the 84-year-old Stewart. She also expressed discontent that “we cannot show our frustration in peaceful demonstrations and that we can be attacked and even killed by Federal troops.”- Katy Perry -The “Firework” singer posted on her Instagram story to urge her American followers to call their elected representatives in the US Senate, urging them to pressure ICE through budget oversight. “Turn anger into action,” the 41-year-old singer wrote.- Kerry Washington -The “Scandal” actress posted a video to her 7.6 million Instagram followers explaining step-by-step how to call their elected representatives and demand funding be blocked for ICE. “You are not powerless over what’s happening in Minnesota,” she said. There is something you can do about it right now.” Washington then demonstrated calling her representative’s office in California on camera.- Billie Eilish -The 24-year-old singer-songwriter called out other celebrities to speak on Pretti’s death. “Hey my fellow celebrities u gonna speak up?” the nine-time Grammy winner wrote in an Instagram story post.Eilish has since shared posts denouncing tactics used by ICE during their immigration raids.