BLUE LIGHTED

Journalist Hospitalized After Scuffle With ICE Agents

The latest violent confrontation with immigration officials landed a journalist in a neck brace.

A photojournalist in New York was hospitalized after a scuffle with ICE agents broke out at immigration court on Tuesday.

L. Vural Elibol, a photojournalist with the Turkey-based Anadolu Agency, and other journalists were allegedly physically confronted by a federal officer in Lower Manhattan. Elibol, identified by a coworker, was subsequently taken to a nearby hospital wearing a neck brace. His condition is unknown.

Dean Moses, amNewYork’s police bureau chief, said he was grabbed by “masked officials” while photographing them apprehending an immigrant inside a public elevator, his outlet reported.

Immigration courts in New York and across the country have increasingly become hotbeds for ICE detentions, often targeting migrants attending court-mandated hearings. According to Gothamist, more than 3,300 such arrests have occurred at the Lower Manhattan court alone.

The Tuesday altercation started when ICE agents followed a woman who had just exited a courtroom, amNY reported.

“A couple of seconds after she goes into the elevator, two ICE agents go in after her,” Moses said. “They never identified themselves, they didn’t ask for her papers or her ID.”

Things escalated when Moses tried to follow the agents.

“I walked into the elevator behind them, and they started screaming at me, ‘Get the f--- out,” he said. “Then they pushed me, grabbed me by my arms, and started pulling me out of the elevator. I tried to hold on, but I got shoved out.”

Moses said Olga Fedorova, a freelancer working for the Associated Press, also fell alongside Eibol, who slammed his head against the ground.

“People immediately started screaming because he was seriously injured,” Moses said. “He was semiconscious, but he didn’t move from the position for 35 to 40 minutes.”

Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin wrote in a statement to the Daily Beast that members of the press “obstructed operations.”

“Officers repeatedly told the crowd of agitators and journalists to get back, move, and get out of the elevator. Rioters and sanctuary politicians who encourage individuals to interfere with arrests are actively creating hostile environments that put officers, detainees and the public in harm’s way,” she wrote.

She wrote that this building has been the subject of threats, adding: “Following last week’s terrorist attack, we are particularly concerned with our officer’s safety. Again, we are urging the media and politicians to stop fanning the flames of division and stop demonization of law enforcement.”

Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, however, slammed the violent incident in a post on X.

“Five days ago, an ICE agent shoved a woman asking questions about the detention of her husband,” he wrote. “Today they attacked journalists from amNewYork and AP. We cannot accept or normalize what has now become routine violence at 26 Federal Plaza. It has no place in our city.”

Gov. Kathy Hochul also condemned the altercation online, writing: “This abuse of law-abiding immigrants and the reporters telling their stories must end. What the hell are we doing here?”

This violent incident comes just days after a supervising ICE officer shoved an Ecuadorian immigrant to the ground in the same courthouse as she pleaded with him to release her husband from custody. The supervisor was relieved of duty shortly after the incident, but reportedly returned to work on Monday, CBS News reported.

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Laura EspositoBreaking News Reporter

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