Portland protests: United States federal agents “will not withdraw,” says Chad Wolf

United States Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf said federal agents “will not withdraw” in their efforts to protect government buildings in Portland.

“If you are a violent troublemaker seeking to inflict damage on federal property or law enforcement, you need to find another line of work,” he said.

United States President Donald Trump sent federal agents to Portland, Oregon to end the weeks of anti-racism protests there.

But the Portland mayor has asked them to leave the United States city.

There have been nightly protests against police brutality in Portland since the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, in Minnesota in May.

• Oregon sues for ‘illegal detentions’ in protests
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In recent days, however, violent clashes between protesters and federal law enforcement officers have increased.

What did Chad Wolf say about the violence?

Speaking during a press conference on Tuesday, Wolf said federal law enforcement officers in Portland were only targeting and arresting protesters who had been identified as being involved in “criminal activities”.

He said the department respected the right of people to protest peacefully, but urged protesters to “stay away from the violent activity that takes place near the courthouse every night.”

On Monday night, federal officials fired tear gas to disperse large crowds of protesters, some armed with hammers, who had gathered outside the city court and were throwing projectiles.

• In pictures: Portland protesters clash with federal officials

Wolf also denied claims that security officers had no identification and insisted that they wore badges that showed they were police.

“These officers are not military, they are civilian police,” he said, adding that they were required to restore order after “violent criminal activities every night for 52 nights” and in response to “the lack of action by officials of the city”. .

“We will continue to take appropriate measures to protect our facilities and our law enforcement officers,” he said, adding that federal agents will leave Portland when the violence stops.

What’s been going on in Portland?

The past week there has been a violent escalation between protesters and federal agents, deployed two weeks ago by Trump to calm civil unrest.

A Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) report this week contained detailed accounts of witnesses who had seen camouflaged federal law enforcement officers emerge from unmarked vehicles, grab protesters without explanation, and leave.

Wolf said Tuesday that federal officials had arrested 43 people in Portland since July 4.

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Over the weekend, protesters dismantled fences around the federal courthouse to protect the building just hours after its installation.

The Oregon attorney’s office said on Twitter that the fence was intended to “reduce tensions” between protesters and law enforcement officials and asked people to leave him alone.

Officers also stated that a riot had occurred outside the Portland Police Association building, which was set on fire.

What has the Trump administration said?

In a tweet on Sunday, President Trump defended the actions of the federal government.

“We are trying to help Portland, not hurt it. Its leadership, for months, has lost control of the anarchists and agitators,” he said.

Earlier in the week, the president said officials in the city had done a “great job.”

“Portland was totally out of control, and they got in, and I think we have a lot of people in jail right now,” he said Monday. “We repressed it a lot.”

Trump has threatened to send federal law enforcement officers to control protests in other major cities in the United States, such as Chicago and New York.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has said he will bring the president to court if he follows through on his threat.