President Donald Trump called for reactivating traffic stops by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE), just one day after his own administration ordered the suspension of most of these operations following two fatal shootings that left two immigrants dead in Maine and Texas.

Through Truth Social, the president defended the work of immigration agents and assured that vehicle checkpoints are one of the most important tools to combat crime and execute his deportation policy. His position contradicts the decision announced by officials from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), who had ordered a temporary halt to this type of action while investigations progress.

Trump defends ICE checkpoints

In his message, Trump praised ICE agents and rejected the abandonment of arrests during traffic stops.

“We cannot give up one of ICE's most important and effective crime-fighting tools, the traffic stop!” wrote the president.

He also asked the agents to act with caution, although he insisted that they must carry out this type of operation again.

The decision comes after two fatal shootings

The suspension of traffic stops was ordered after the death of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 26-year-old Colombian immigrant who was shot by an ICE agent during an operation in Biddeford, Maine. Days earlier, another agent killed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican immigrant, during a similar intervention in Houston. Both cases are being investigated by the FBI and the DHS internal affairs office.

According to the AP agency, the suspension was promoted by DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin after speaking with Republican Senator Susan Collins, who expressed concern about the security of this type of operation. The measure contemplated exceptions for criminal investigations and coordinated actions with other agencies.