The Wire - January 26, 2026

//The Wire//2300Z January 26, 2026//
//ROUTINE//
//BLUF: VIOLENCE ESCALATES IN MINNEAPOLIS AS COUNTER-ICE GROUPS CONTINUE TO OPERATE FREELY. UNREST EMERGES IN MAINE AS ANTI-ICE PROTESTS CONTINUE.//

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-HomeFront-

Maine: Anti-ICE demonstrations have begun to increase in Portland, which have continued in the same manner as observed in Minneapolis. Friday night, activists conducted disruption/noise-making efforts outside several hotels in Portland, which were suspected of housing ICE agents.

Minnesota: The situation in Minneapolis has continued to deteriorate, as riots became more violent and more organized over the weekend.

In the vicinity of the shooting site along Nicollet Avenue, civil unrest remained constant throughout the day of the shooting, with many different roadblocks being emplaced on the cardinal points surrounding the site. Similarly, every business on this street that had outdoor decorations, dumpsters, or anything else, found their property stolen so as to emplace the ANTIFA-style roadblocks that are customary of that organization. These roadblocks prevented the free flow of traffic, and remained in place until local police cleared the roadway in the early hours of the next morning.

Throughout Saturday night, instances of vandalism were reported, such as graffiti being spray painted at a Pizza restaurant on the corner of 27th and Nicollet. This restaurant is currently abandoned (and is therefore undefended Key Terrain) after closing down last year. Across the street from the Black Sheep Pizza Reference Point, two armed representatives of the Socialist Rifle Association (SRA) were observed posted up at the intersection of Nicollet and E 27th Street, conducting a short Presence Patrol operation.

Sunday morning, Area Denial operations were also noted around the city at large. At least one individual was arrested after emplacing homemade caltrops on the roadway, which were set up as vehicle obstacles in areas where federal forces were conducting patrols.

On the Civil Unrest front, Sunday evening riots were reported at area hotels, which have also become increasingly more violent. Several situations have been reported involving federal agents being swarmed. Overnight, federal Division of Prisons officers were attacked and wounded by rioters who attacked them at the Hilton Home2 Suites east of the University.

Concerning the composition and disposition of other forces, National Guard troops under the command of Gov. Walz have established a position adjacent to the Whipple Federal building, which is serving as a support site for protesters. Over the weekend, Walz's soldiers provided materiel aid to the protest group outside the Whipple Federal building, which took the form of handing out free hot chocolate and donuts to the demonstrators. This was mostly a squad-sized effort for PR purposes, and not a persistently occupied position.

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Analyst Comments: In addition to the tactical situation on the ground in Minneapolis, one of the group chats used to coordinate the unrest activities was leaked over the weekend. This group chat is being used to dox and harass ICE agents, plan violence at riots, and coordinate and liaise with ICEWatch and Defend612 cells throughout the city.

This Signal chat leak also identified several businesses which are specifically working with ICEWatch to host space at their venues for Observation Posts to be stood up. Most restaurants and storefronts in Minneapolis have signs on their doors banning ICE from entering, but the active steps to provide materiel aid to ICEWatch personnel is another point of escalation that has been occurring for some time, without much notice.

In terms of other forces on the ground, local law enforcement and National Guard forces are either being ordered to stand down and not assist federal agents, or are being given menial taskings far away from the actual conflict zones, and therefore are combat ineffective. For context, Gov. Walz has also ordered his troops to change their uniform posture for identification purposes. Forces under the command of Gov. Walz are wearing Yellow Vests, separating them out from any Federal troops that may be deployed to the area.

More broadly, rioters have transitioned out of the phase of only causing civil unrest, and are getting more powerful and organized as directed by the State. Politicians at the city and state level are doing everything in their power to stoke up the violence, which now includes directly leading and liaising with the groups responsible for the unrest, as indicated by the Signal chat leaks.

It is this organization that sets the Minneapolis situation apart from other instances of civil unrest, and it is also why the use of Lethal Force will continually be applied when all other options to control the situation have failed. Federal agents cannot (and should not) be expected to allow themselves to be dragged by a crowd and beaten to death in the streets, and if there is a reasonable perception of that being a possibility the use of force will be justified. Therefore, more small arms engagements are a certainty as long as the attacks on ICE agents are being directed by groups linked to State officials.

However, even though Minneapolis is grabbing all of the headlines right now, other efforts are underway in other areas. Large-scale protests are growing in nearly every state, from Utah to Georgia. Due to the increased ICE operations, Maine is likely to be host to an elevated level of unrest for some time as demonstrators use the same Minneapolis playbook in other areas. As such, many other states are likely to witness increased protest activity by proxy, as long as the situation in Minneapolis remains hot.

Analyst: S2A1
Research: https://publish.obsidian.md/s2underground
Disclaimer: No LLMs were used in the writing of this report.
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