Aliya Rahman, a US-born software engineer and social justice activist, was dragged from her car by ICE agents during a Minneapolis protest after she said she was disabled and trying to reach a doctor
Aliya Rahman, Software Engineer and Racial Justice Activist, Detained by ICE After Protest Standoff (Source: X/ @UNOWEN1234)
Minneapolis News: A woman seen in a distressing viral video being pulled out of her car by ICE agents in Minneapolis has been identified as Aliya Rahman, a well-known technology expert and activist for LGBT rights and racial justice.
The video was filmed on Tuesday, January 13, when federal agents were trying to clear a street during a protest. Rahman was accused of blocking ICE vehicles during the demonstration. The incident happened only days after the killing of Renee Nicole Good, a mother of three who was shot by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.
Aliya Rahman is a US-born citizen, according to the New York Post. She is a software engineer who has worked in coding and digital security. She is also known for supporting police body-camera policies and has long-standing links with social justice groups, including the Black Lives Matter movement.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Aliya Rahman is a community-focused security practitioner based in Minneapolis. On X she calls herself “your friendly neighborhood deniable asset.”
She previously worked as a fellow at New America’s Open Technology Institute, where her first major project focused on police body cameras and how they should be regulated by policy.
Her biography on the institute’s website reveals that her work is based on years of activism, software development for social justice, and experience in education and research.
The footage shows ICE officers smashing the passenger-side window of Rahman’s black car and dragging her out. As this happens, she can be heard yelling that she is disabled and was trying to go to a medical appointment.
"I'm disabled, I'm trying to go to the doctor up there, that’s why I couldn’t move. I am an autistic disabled person, I’m trying to go to the doctor," she shouted while agents forced her to the ground and placed her in handcuffs.
In Minneapolis, masked officers smashed her car window and dragged her into the street, despite her saying, ‘I am disabled, I have a brain injury.’ pic.twitter.com/nFagt9KEFp
— Ounka (@OunkaOnX) January 15, 2026
Before the window was broken, some officers were seen speaking to her and asking her to move. People nearby were shouting, “Go, go, go, go,” at the driver. At the same time, one Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) agent leaned into the car and unlocked the door while another grabbed her.
As Rahman was pulled away, protesters blew whistles and shouted at the agents. One person yelled, “Where is your humanity?” while another said, "All you do is hurt."
🚨 JUST IN: ICE RIPPED a woman from her car in Minneapolis after she BLOCKED them from driving down the road
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) January 13, 2026
She then begs and pleads for mercy.
NOPE! You f***ed around, and now you’re finding out! 😆 pic.twitter.com/AaiYzvQflI
After the video went viral, ICE official Marcos Charles spoke to FOX News and warned people not to interfere with immigration enforcement. "We will be arresting anybody that interferes or impedes in any of these enforcement actions," he said.
He also said many people had already been detained, adding, "We've already arrested 60… that have got in our way, impeded us or assaulted an officer."
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security told The Independent that ICE agents were in the area to arrest a 20-year-old man from Ecuador who they said entered the US illegally near El Paso, Texas, in 2019.
The spokesperson said Rahman was taken into custody after refusing to move her car.
“One agitator ignored multiple commands by an officer to move her vehicle away from the scene, and she was arrested for obstruction. Another agitator assaulted an officer by jumping on his back. Six of these agitators were taken into custody for assaulting law enforcement,” the spokesperson said.
