Several federal prosecutors in Minnesota were formally fired Wednesday after they gave notice that they had resigned afof internal disagreements over the Justice Department’s handling of a shooting investigation involving Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The DOJ, at the direction of Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, terminated the employment of five prosecutors in the U.S. attorney’s office in Minnesota, including Joseph Thompson, the No. 2 official there, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

Their resignations and the internal disputes about the shooting probe first surfaced in The New York Times. The prosecutors were positioned to receive paid leave for months prior to their firings on Wednesday, according to the sources.

WHY THE FBI CAN EXCLUDE STATE AUTHORITIES FROM MINNESOTA SHOOTING PROBE

Thompson was spearheading a massive, high-profile investigation into welfare fraud in the state before he submitted his resignation. His exit came after he clashed with officials in Washington, D.C., over the investigation into the ICE shooting, which left 37-year-old Renee Good dead. Fox News Digital reached out to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Minnesota in an effort to reach Thompson for comment.

Thompson had expressed during a call with DOJ and FBI officials last week that he was on board with investigating the ICE shooting as an assault on or obstruction of a law enforcement officer, a source familiar with the call told Fox News Digital.

Another one of the fired prosecutors, Melinda Williams, who was also involved in the fraud work, was on the call as well, the source said.

Thompson also indicated that he believed the shooting was justified, two sources said. Prior to the shooting, he had already been discussing the possibility of resigning, the sources said.

Videos of the shooting showed an ICE agent opening fire on Good at close range after she was seen accelerating toward the agent in her vehicle while he was standing in front of it. Critics have argued that the agent improperly used deadly force against Good and that she had turned the wheels of her vehicle away from the agent before accelerating.

A crashed car where an ICE agent shot Renee Good. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)

The FBI is investigating the incident and has excluded Minnesota prosecutors from the probe, which the Trump administration has said is justified because the incident involved a federal officer. Minnesota leaders have denounced that decision and launched their own parallel investigation.

While supportive of conducting the investigation as an offensive against law enforcement — rather than a civil rights matter against the agent — Thompson had reservations during last week’s call about the DOJ’s plan to also investigate Good’s widow and other possible co-conspirators, the source familiar with the call said.

The FBI had developed evidence that suggested Good and her spouse had at some point been following ICE officers on the day of the shooting, the source said.

That revelation echoes Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s allegations during a recent press conference that Good had been «stalking and impeding» ICE throughout the day of the shooting. Noem said Good «weaponized» her vehicle and that the ICE agent who fired shots feared for his life.

In a statement to Minnesota Public Radio, Good’s spouse, Becca, said that on Jan. 7, the day of the shooting, she and Renee «stopped to support [their] neighbors.»

«We had whistles. They had guns,» Becca Good said.

FAMILIAR PROTEST GROUPS MOBILIZE IMMEDIATELY AFTER ICE SHOOTING OF MINNESOTA PROTESTER

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey speaks to the media at City Hall Jan. 9. Frey has repeatedly called for federal immigration authorities to leave his city.  (Aaron Lavinsky/The Minnesota Star Tribune via Getty Images)

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and other Democrats have lauded the prosecutors who resigned, framing their departures as a valiant boycott against DOJ.

«These prosecutors are heroes, and the people pushing to prosecute Renee’s widow are monsters,» Frey wrote on X.

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At this stage, there is no sign that the DOJ is planning to bring charges against Becca Good despite the DOJ and FBI pursuing an investigation into her as part of a broader probe into any conspiracies to hinder federal law enforcement operations.

Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ for comment.

David Spunt contributed to this report.

Armed Kurdish separatist groups tried to cross into Iran from Iraq in recent days, stoking fears that the country’s spiraling unrest has attracted dangerous foreign militants who could destabilize the wider region, according to reports.

Iranian officials said the attempted breach came amid a sweeping crackdown on nationwide protests against the country’s regime, with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) leading the response, Reuters reported.

The Tasnim News Agency also reported armed militia groups operating in Iraq crossed the border in western and northwestern Iran, according to Middle East Monitor.

TOP IRANIAN OFFICIAL DOWNPLAYS DEATH TOLL, BLAMES ‘ISRAELI PLOT’ AS US CONSIDERS STRIKES

Reuters had reported that three sources, including a senior Iranian official, said Turkey’s intelligence agency, known as MIT, warned the IRGC that Kurdish fighters were trying to cross the Iran-Iraq border.

The Iranian official said clashes also broke out after the attempt to cross and accused the fighters of trying to exploit the unrest and create further instability.

According to the Council on Foreign Relations, around 30 million Kurds live in the Middle East, mainly in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.

TRUMP SAYS IRAN ‘STARTING TO’ CROSS US RED LINES AS PROTESTERS DIE IN GOVERNMENT CRACKDOWN

Kurdish separatists attempted an Iran crossing from Iraq amid protests. (Mustafa Ozer/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey has designated Kurdish militant groups in northern Iraq as terrorist organizations and has carried out cross-border military operations against them. The Turkish military has also targeted PKK bases in Iraq.

In 2025, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) said it would disarm and end its decades-long battle against Turkey.

Reuters said MIT and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s office did not comment on the Iran crossing, though it warned that any interference in Iran would inflame regional crises.

‘LEAVE IRAN NOW’: US EMBASSY POSTS WARNING TO AMERICANS STILL IN THE COUNTRY

Iranians attend an anti-government protest Jan. 9 in Tehran, Iran. (UGC via AP)

Iranian authorities alleged the fighters were dispatched from Iraq and Turkey and said the Iranian regime has asked both governments to stop any transfer of fighters or weapons into Iran.

The number of deaths during the crackdown on protesters rose to at least 2,571 on Wednesday, accordin g to the Human Rights Activists News Agency.

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President Donald Trump said Wednesday he had been told the killings had halted, and he believes there is no plan for large-scale executions. 

Asked who told him, Trump said they were «very important sources on the other side.»

Iran closed its airspace to most flights Wednesday, according to flight-tracking website Flightradar24, with the closure lasting a little more than two hours.

La embajada de Estados Unidos en Doha indicó que ha recomendado a su personal limitar los viajes no esenciales a la base aérea de Al-Udeid ante la creciente tensión regional

Irán amenazó este miércoles con lanzar ataques contra bases militares de Estados Unidos y sus aliados en Medio Oriente si Washington interviene en apoyo a las masivas protestas que sacuden al país. El ministro de Defensa iraní, Aziz Nafizardeh, advirtió que cualquier instalación regional que colabore con una ofensiva será considerada un “objetivo legítimo” y prometió una respuesta “dolorosa”. La escalada bélica se materializó con los primeros reportes diplomáticos sobre la evacuación preventiva de personal estadounidense de la base aérea Al Udeid en Qatar, luego de que el presidente Donald Trump afirmara que “la ayuda está en camino” para los manifestantes y mantuviera abierta la opción de una acción militar.

La tensión externa coincide con un endurecimiento de la represión interna. El jefe del Poder Judicial, Gholamhosein Mohseni Ejei, anunció la puesta en marcha de juicios “rápidos” contra los detenidos, justificando la celeridad procesal para delitos de moharebeh o “guerra contra Dios”. Esta política judicial ha encendido las alarmas globales ante la posible ejecución inminente de Erfan Soltani, de 26 años. Mientras el régimen reconoció por primera vez una cifra global de 2.000 muertos durante los disturbios, organismos independientes como HRANA elevan el conteo a 2.571 fallecidos verificados y denuncian que más de 10.000 personas permanecen bajo custodia en medio de un apagón digital que ya supera las 132 horas consecutivas.

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