Arson attack on ICE office in WA forces agents to flee

The incident occurred on Saturday when an unidentified suspect reportedly threw a rock into a window of the building before igniting a fire behind the property. Flames were seen burning the grass outside the fenced perimeter, and a large cloud of smoke formed. No injuries were reported in the attack.

The office is located about 140 miles southeast of Seattle and houses operations for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as well as the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services. Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said it remains unclear whether the arsonist specifically targeted federal immigration agents, but the building is publicly marked as a Department of Homeland Security facility.

The attack comes as ICE personnel have seen an 830 percent increase in assaults against personnel under the Trump administration, amid efforts by the federal government to ramp up efforts to carry out deportations and enforce immigration law. McLaughlin has attributed the increase in assaults in part to the harsh rhetoric of Democrat politicians who run sanctuary states and cities.

“Make no mistake, Democrat politicians like [House Minority Leader] Hakeem Jeffries, Mayor [Michelle] Wu of Boston, [Minnesota Gov.] Tim Walz, and Mayor [Karen] Bass of Los Angeles are contributing to the surge in assaults of our ICE officers through their repeated vilification and demonization of ICE,” McLaughlin said. “From comparisons to the modern-day Nazi Gestapo to glorifying rioters, the violent rhetoric of these sanctuary politicians is beyond the pale."

DHS also emphasized the administration’s zero-tolerance policy toward attacks on law enforcement: “Secretary [Kristi] Noem has been clear: Anyone who seeks to harm law enforcement officers will be found and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The incident is currently being investigated by local authorities as a case of arson.