CHICAGO () At least three people were arrested after federal immigration officers used tear gas and pepper balls in response to anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement protesters demonstrating in front of the ICE processing center just outside of Chicago on Friday morning.

An ICE spokesperson told that federal law enforcement officers arrested protesters, who officials say assaulted federal officers and slashed the tire of federal vehicles while also blocking the path of vehicles attempting to leave the processing center in suburban Broadview.

The center is being used as the main processing hub for undocumented immigrants who are detained by federal immigration officers and agents during “Operation Midway Blitz.” Organizers said they planned to hold weekly demonstrations at the processing center, which is separate from an ICE detention center.

Protesters chanted, “Save your soul, quit your job” at federal officers, who are part of the large-scale, multiagency operation that began last week. In response, Department of Homeland Security officers, speaking over a loudspeaker, ordered protesters to disperse, telling them they were violating federal law by obstructing officers from doing their job.

Between 75-100 protesters attempt to impede officers at ICE facility

ICE officials said that more than 100 protesters were involved in the clash with federal officers, which led to multiple arrests. estimated that the number of demonstrators was between 75 and 100 as the number of those involved diminished throughout the day.

One protester was taken inside the processing center by federal officers after he picked up a tear gas canister that was dropped by an officer and tossed it in the direction of where media members were standing. The man remained in custody inside the facility as of mid-Friday morning despite chants by protesters for him to be released.

Protesters on Friday also slashed a tire of one of the vehicles that DHS is using to move detained migrants from the facility. Among the federal officials who arrived on scene was Gregory Bovino, the Border Patrol commander-at-large, who oversaw the large-scale immigration enforcement operation in Los Angeles and who has been assigned to run the ongoing Chicago effort.

ICE officials told that local police departments that operate under the Illinois Trust Act, which prohibits state and local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration officers, refused to answer calls for assistance multiple times.

A White House spokesperson told that “violent riots” are a direct consequence of elected Democrats smearing heroic law enforcement officers as ‘Gestapo’ or ‘Nazis’ simply for enforcing federal law.”

“Democrats must turn down the volume, stop siding with criminal illegal aliens over American law enforcement officers, and tell their supporters to stop the violence,” spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said Friday.

Another protest is scheduled for Friday evening at the facility, which is located in the Chicago suburb of Broadview.

Because of so-called “sanctuary” laws, those being detained by ICE during the ongoing operation are being transported to detention centers in either Wisconsin or Indiana. DHS officials said on Friday that more than 400 undocumented immigrants have been arrested and detained by federal immigration officers and agents since the crackdown started in Chicago last week.

IL Lt. Governor, other elected officials join protest at ICE processing center

On Friday morning, cameras caught protesters blocking vehicles leaving the processing center, which led federal officers to use tear gas and pepper balls in response to the crowds. Among those in attendance Friday was Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, who said she came out to “stand with her neighbors.”

“I’m out here today with that same kind of spirit of speaking out and making it clear that this is a time for courage,” Stratton said. “It’s not just courage, it’s action.”

Daniel Biss, mayor of suburban Evanston, also attended Friday’s demonstration and wrote on social media that he and other peaceful protesters were tear-gassed by federal officers.

“This is a terrifying escalation, but we will not back down,” Biss wrote.

Kat Abughazaleh, a 26-year-old progressive who is running for the state’s 9th Congressional District seat, posted a video on social media of herself being dragged away from the protest by a federal immigration officer and tossed to the ground after she attempted to block the path of a federal vehicle leaving the processing center.

“This is what it looks like when ICE violates our First Amendment rights,” she wrote.

Ill. State Sen. Karina Villa, a Democrat, told on Friday that ICE’s response to protests like the one that took place on Friday is a violation of First Amendment rights, which she is are “under attack.”

“We need to remember that we have those freedoms and we need to keep fighting for those freedoms,” Villa said.

ICE did not immediately return a request for comment about Friday’s demonstration.

The protest was larger than previous demonstrations that have taken place in Broadview, where the windows and doors of the ICE facility have been boarded up for weeks. The facility has remained at the center of attention since word spread that DHS officials would be targeting the Chicago area.

Federal officers are also a nearby suburban U.S. Naval Base as a command center. previously reported that federal officers and agents were being trained to use flash bang grenades to contain large crowds.

President Donald Trump said this week he planned to deploy the National Guard to Chicago after the guard’s current operation in Memphis wraps up.

In addition to ICE and Customs and Border Protection officers and agents, members of the Border Patrol’s elite tactical unit, BORTAC, were also on the ground Friday at the facility.

“This is an organized effort to obstruct ICE law enforcement,” a DHS statement sent to indicated. “These riots… and attacks on ICE officers come after Democrat politicians, including Governor Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson, have villainized and demonized ICE law enforcement.”