Melania Trump Calls for ‘Unity’ Days After ICU Nurse Alex Pretti Was Gunned Down by ICE in Minnesota

Melania Trump spoke out in a rare political statement just days after Minnesota ICU nurse Alex Pretti was shot and killed by an ICE agent during a peaceful protest in Minneapolis.

“We need to unify. I’m calling for unity,” the First Lady, 55, said during an appearance on Fox & Friends on Tuesday, January 27. “I know my husband, the president, had a great call with the governor [of Minnesota] and the mayor [of Minneapolis].”

She continued, “They’re working together to make it peaceful and without riots. I’m against the violence, so please, if you protest, protest in peace. We need to unify in these times.”

Melania also addressed the recent winter storm that has affected a large part of the nation with freezing temperatures and accumulation of snow and ice. She said she felt “deep compassion,” adding, “As Americans, we need to help each other and come together in these difficult times.”

Despite Melania’s call for the public to “protest in peace,” available video footage appears to show that Pretti was doing exactly that at the time he was killed.

That portrayal contrasts with a Department of Homeland Security statement shared on X following the ICU nurse’s death, which alleged that he had “approached U.S. Border Patrol officers with a 9mm semi automatic handgun” and “violently resisted” efforts to disarm him. The statement added that an agent then “fired defensive shots.”

Footage verified by The New York Times appeared to contradict DHS’s account of the incident, showing Pretti among protesters with his hands visible and a phone in one hand as pepper spray was deployed. Moments later, agents pinned him to the sidewalk and one appears to remove his gun before another agent fires the first shot at Pretti. The video does not appear to show Pretti holding or reaching for a weapon at any time.