US President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the fatal shooting of two Minneapolis protesters by immigration enforcement officers was not justified.
Asked by a reporter during an Oval Office interview if he thought the shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good were justified, Trump said: "No. I don't. It should have not happened."
"It was a very sad incident, two incidents, and you know, they mentioned the one, now they don't mention the other. Well, I think they were both sad," he said during an interview with NBC News.
Protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations and shootings by federal immigration agents have taken place for more than a month across the Midwestern state of Minnesota.
Demonstrations escalated and spread nationwide following the killing of Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care nurse, by immigration officers on Jan. 24 and the Jan. 7 killing of Good, a 37-year-old mother of three.
The Pretti shooting heightened tensions as local and state leaders demanded independent investigations and questioned federal cooperation with authorities.
