Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem and other federal officials were in Minneapolis on Friday afternoon for what they called a discussion on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations and to give an update on President Trump's immigration enforcement operations in the region. 

Since January, federal law enforcement officers with Homeland Security Investigations in the Twin Cities have arrested over 4,300 people who Noem said were "committing crimes and here illegally in this country." She said 3,316 of them have a criminal history.

"Of those individuals, 98 of them were gang members. Members of foreign terrorist organizations as designated by the Trump administration," Noem said at a news conference at the Whipple Building in Minneapolis.

She added that 11 are suspected terrorists and two are foreign fugitives.

Across the country, over 515,000 people have been arrested and deported for "breaking our laws," Noem said.

Federal officials said they're looking for more local law enforcement agencies in Minnesota to partner with.

"They know so many of these individuals that are dangerous in their communities, and they can work with us to make sure that we're meeting not just their law enforcement needs but also, we're getting those people out of their area as soon as possible," Noem said. 

Immigration enforcement agents have been "demonized here," according to Noem, and said more are on the way.

Dozens of demonstrators protesting what organizers called "her cruel message" were standing outside the Whipple Building while the news conference was ongoing.

Noem also claimed 1.6 million people have voluntarily deported.

Mayor Jacob Frey said in a written statement ahead of Noem's visit on Friday, "Minneapolis doesn't flinch when it comes to our values. We stand with our immigrant neighbors — not just in words, but in the laws we've passed, the policies we enforce, and the way we show up for each other every day."

Minneapolis City Councilor Jason Chavez wrote a letter to his constituents on Thursday, saying he was "concerned" after hearing about Noem's scheduled news conference. Chavez went on to write about the city's lawsuit with eight other local governments against the Trump administration regarding the conditions it set for millions of federal dollars for emergency and disaster preparedness. 

Late last month, the United States Department of Justice sued the state of Minnesota, as well as the cities of St. Paul and Minneapolis, over so-called "sanctuary city" policies. In the 34-page lawsuit, the department asked a judge to invalidate sections of the state constitution, city codes in St. Paul and Minneapolis and Hennepin County administrative orders. Federal prosecutors claim the collective policies that prevent local cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement are unconstitutional. 

Both Minneapolis and St. Paul have city ordinances that prohibit cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. The state of Minnesota has no law making it a "sanctuary state" for undocumented immigrants.