Federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have arrested more than 250 people in North Carolina, following an operation that focused primarily on Charlotte, the state's largest city.

The number This represents double the number of arrests initially announced by federal officials, according to reports released to the media on Wednesday. The action is part of the Trump administration's new crackdown on immigration, which since January has deployed military personnel and immigration agents to Democratic-majority cities across the country. Although the federal offensive appeared to be easing on Thursday, according to local law enforcement leaders, a Homeland Security official insisted that the arrests would not stop. “The operation is not over and it's not going to end anytime soon,” said Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security. Both the local sheriff and the police department stated that same day that the operation appeared to have concluded less than a week after it began. Federal authorities have offered few details about those detained, nor about when or where agents will appear next. Confusion surrounds “Operation Charlotte Web” Mecklenburg County Sheriff Garry McFadden said in a statement that federal officials confirmed the US Customs and Border Protection operation known as Operation Charlotte Web had ended, but that agents would continue operating as they have in the past. Charlotte-Mecklenburg police posted on social media Thursday that they had received “reliable information” that Border Patrol personnel involved in the operation had left that morning.

But the Department of Homeland Security said that federal agencies “continue to focus their efforts on some of the most dangerous criminal illegal immigrants as Operation Charlotte Web progresses.”

A Nationwide Surge in Arrests

Since the beginning of the year, immigration-related arrests have surpassed 60,000, an all-time record.

Operations are multiplying in both large cities and small communities, with notable arrests in places like Portland, Oregon,where more than 560 arrests were reported in October.

In North Carolina, the crackdown spread this week to areas near the capital, Raleigh, generating alarm among residents and affecting daily life in neighborhoods with a high population.

Raleigh Mayor Janet Cowell reported on social media Wednesday that “it appears that immigration surveillance” by agents in the city has been suspended, although the DHS no official confirmation was issued.

Communities paralyzed and businesses closed

The federal deployment has had immediate consequences. In Charlotte, residents have stopped going to school and work, and small businesses closed to avoid confrontations with immigration agents.

At a local shopping center, laundromat customers fled hastily, leaving clothes in washers and dryers after agents appeared.

David Rebolloso, the business owner, said that although he is a US citizen, the situation has hit his income hard.

“Business is down. I have no customers,” he told local media.

Protests against federal operations

The operation also sparked demonstrations in Charlotte, where about 100 people protested Wednesday in front of a Home Depot store, a place where agents have been seen regularly.

Under slogans like “ICE out of Home Depot!” And chanting “Protect our communities!”, migrant advocacy groups briefly entered the establishment to demand an end to the operations.

The targets: undocumented immigrants and people with criminal records

Although federal authorities have provided few details about those detained, they maintain that the operations focus on people who are in the country without legal authorization and, especially, those with criminal records.

However, the secrecy surrounding the arrests and the lack of explanation regarding future deployments keep the population in a state of uncertainty.

New Offensive in Louisiana

Documents obtained by the press reveal that the next major immigration operation will move to New Orleans, where approximately 250 federal agents are expected to arrive for a two-month operation that would formally begin on December 1.

Commander Gregory Bovino, responsible for the operation in North Carolina, will also coordinate the deployment in Louisiana.