Rep. Ilhan Omar rushed on stage and sprayed with liquid at town hall event
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was rushed by a man during a town hall event Tuesday night and sprayed with a liquid via a syringe.
Footage from the event shows a man approaching Omar at her lectern as she is delivering remarks and spraying an unknown substance in her direction, before swiftly being tackled by security. Omar called on Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign or face impeachment immediately before the assault.
Noem has faced criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in the aftermath of the fatal shooting of 37-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretti by federal officers in Minneapolis Saturday.
Omar’s staff can be heard urging her to step away and get “checked out,” with others nearby saying the substance smelled bad.
“We will continue,” Omar responded. “These f******* a**holes are not going to get away with it.”
A statement from Omar’s office released after the event said the individual who approached and sprayed the congresswoman is now in custody.
“The Congresswoman is okay,” the statement read. “She continued with her town hall because she doesn’t let bullies win.”
Omar followed up with a statement on social media saying she will not be intimidated.
I’m ok. I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work.
I don’t let bullies win.
Grateful to my incredible constituents who rallied behind me. Minnesota strong.
— Ilhan Omar (@IlhanMN) January 28, 2026
As Omar continued her remarks at the town hall, she said: “We are Minnesota strong and we will stay resilient in the face of whatever they might throw at us.”
Just three days ago, fellow Democrat Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida said he was assaulted at the Sundance Festival by a man “who told me that Trump was going to deport me before he punched me in the face.”
Threats against Congressional lawmakers have been rising. Last year, there was an increase in security funding in the wake of growing concerns about political violence in the country.
According to the U.S. Capitol Police, the number of threat assessment cases has increased for the third year in a row. In 2025, the USCP investigated 14,938 “concerning statements, behaviors, and communications” directed towards congressional lawmakers, their families and staff. That figure represents a nearly 58% increase from 2024.
Mexican president says her country has paused oil shipments to Cuba
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said the pause was part of general fluctuations in oil supplies and that it was a "sovereign decision" not made under pressure from the United States.
Spain will grant legal status to immigrants lacking authorization
Spain's government announced Tuesday it will grant legal status to potentially hundreds of thousands of immigrants living and working in the country without authorization.
It’s the foundation of psychiatric diagnosis. And it’s about to get a makeover
The current edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual is known as the DSM-5. What will the next version be called? That's one of several open questions as the "Bible of psychiatry" goes online.
Internal review contradicts White House narrative of Pretti’s death
The preliminary assessment from Customs and Border Protection makes no mention of Alex Pretti attacking officers or threatening them with a weapon — as the administration first described the incident.
Bitter cold grips the eastern U.S. as storm deaths rise and power outages linger
Three Texas siblings who died in an icy pond are among several dozen deaths in U.S. states gripped by frigid cold. A massive storm dumped deep snow across more than 1,300 miles from Arkansas to New England.
Italian officials voice outrage at the presence of U.S. ICE agents at the 2026 Olympics
U.S. Homeland Security agents provided security support at past Olympics. But after violence by ICE agents in Minneapolis, some Italian officials say an ICE unit is unwelcome in Milan Cortina.
