WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department filed a new lawsuit Friday against Harvard University, saying its leadership failed to address antisemitism on campus, creating grounds for the government to freeze existing grants and seek repayment for grants already paid.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Massachusetts, is another salvo in a protracted battle between the administration of President Donald Trump and the elite university.

“The United States cannot and will not tolerate these failures,” the Justice Department wrote in the lawsuit. It asked the court to compel Harvard to comply with federal civil rights law and to help it “recover billions of dollars of taxpayer subsidies awarded to a discriminatory institution.”

The lawsuit also asks a judge to require Harvard to call police to arrest protesters blocking parts of campus and to appoint an independent monitor, approved by the government, to ensure the university complies with court orders.

In a statement, Harvard said it “cares deeply about members of our Jewish and Israeli community and remains committed to ensuring they are embraced, respected, and can thrive on our campus.”

“Harvard has taken substantive, proactive steps to address the root causes of antisemitism and actively enforces anti-harassment and anti-discrimination rules and policies,” the statement read.

In a pair of lawsuits filed last year by the university, Harvard has said it’s being illegally penalized for refusing to adopt the administration’s views. A federal judge sided with Harvard in September, reversing the funding cuts and calling the antisemitism argument a “smokescreen.”

Trump’s year-long battle with Harvard

The government’s new lawsuit comes after negotiations appear to have bogged down in the year-long battle, which has tested the boundaries of the government’s authority over America’s universities. What began as an investigation into allegations of campus antisemitism escalated into an all-out feud. The Trump administration slashed more than $2.6 billion in Harvard’s research funding, ended federal contracts and attempted to block Harvard from hosting international students.

Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, a major association of colleges and universities, accused the administration of launching a “full scale, multi-pronged” attack on Harvard. Friday’s lawsuit, he said in an email, is just the latest attempt to pressure Harvard to agree to changes favored by the administration.

“When bullies pound on the table and don’t get what they want, they pound again,” Mitchell said.

The Trump administration’s aggressive tactics toward Harvard mark an extraordinary departure from how previous administrations have enforced civil rights law at American colleges. In the past, the government investigated allegations of civil rights violations, produced findings and typically reached an agreement with the college to bring it into compliance. Occasionally, the government levied fines and could threaten to pull federal funding. The process typically took months or years.

In contrast, Trump had been in office fewer than three months before he had frozen billions of dollars in grants to Harvard, including money for medical research. He has since tried to press the school to pay the government to end the standoff.

“The administration appears to have filed this new lawsuit to make an end run around its loss in the district courts and the pending appeal, and its failed settlement negotiations with Harvard,” said Anurima Bhargava, former chief of the Educational Opportunities Section at the U.S. Department of Justice and a senior adviser for the group Stand for Campus Freedom.

At issue: Civil rights and First Amendment rights

The Trump administration’s case has centered on allegations of discrimination against Harvard’s Jewish and Israeli students during and after pro-Palestinian demonstrations related to the Israel-Hamas war.

Officials concluded Harvard did not adequately address concerns about antisemitism that some students said kept them from going to class. During protests of the war, Trump officials said, Harvard permitted students to demonstrate against Israel’s actions in the school library and allowed a pro-Palestinian encampment to remain on campus for 20 days, “in violation of university policy.”

In its lawsuit Friday, the Justice Department also accused Harvard of failing to discipline staff or students who protested or tacitly endorsed the demonstrations by canceling class or dismissing students early.

“Harvard University has failed to protect its Jewish students from harassment and has allowed discrimination to wreak havoc on its campus,” White House press secretary Liz Huston said Friday on X.

Harvard, in turn, has said the government is violating its First Amendment rights, after it defied federal demands that it limit activism on campus and change some practices for hiring and enrollment.

“The tradeoff put to Harvard and other universities is clear: Allow the Government to micromanage your academic institution or jeopardize the institution’s ability to pursue medical breakthroughs, scientific discoveries, and innovative solutions,” attorneys for Harvard said in a lawsuit over the funding freeze.

Negotiations with Harvard have frayed

Despite their bitter dispute, Harvard and the Trump administration have held some negotiations, and the two sides have reportedly been close to reaching an agreement on multiple occasions. Last year, they were reportedly approaching a deal requiring Harvard to pay $500 million to regain access to federal funding and end the investigations. Several months later, Trump upped that figure to $1 billion, saying Harvard has been “behaving very badly.”

At the same time, the administration was taking steps in a civil rights investigation that could jeopardize all Harvard’s federal funding.

Last June, a federal task force said its investigation had found the university was a “willful participant” in antisemitic harassment of Jewish students and faculty. The task force threatened to refer the case to the Justice Department to file a civil rights lawsuit “as soon as possible,” unless Harvard came into compliance.

When colleges are found in violation of federal civil rights law, they almost always reach compliance through voluntary agreements. Friday’s lawsuit by the Justice Department points to an extraordinarily rare impasse.

Harvard has said it strongly disagrees with the government’s civil rights finding and is committed to fighting bias.

Harvard President Alan M. Garber says the school formed a task force to combat antisemitism. The university also hired a new provost and new deans and reformed its discipline policies to make them “more consistent, fair and effective,” Garber has said.

Since he took office, Trump has targeted elite universities he believes are overrun by left-wing ideology and antisemitism. His administration has frozen billions of dollars in research grants, which colleges have come to rely on for scientific and medical research.

Several universities have reached agreements with the White House to restore funding. Some deals have included direct payments to the government, including $200 million from Columbia University. Brown University agreed to pay $50 million toward state workforce development groups.

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AP Education Writer Collin Binkley contributed to this report.

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Editor’s note: Previous versions of this story had incorrect timing for a federal judge’s order that reversed the Trump administration’s funding cuts at Harvard. The judge ordered the cuts reversed in September, not December.

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The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The presenter was quick to apologise to BBC viewers after the incident unfolded on Comic Relief.

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Presenter Davina McCall addressed people watching Comic Relief on Friday night (March 20) over Nick Mohammed’s strong language.

During the BBC show, which saw Catherine Tate reprise her role as Nan, Celebrity Traitors star Nick was given the challenge of solving eight Rubik’s Cube in one minute.

Assisting him on stage was his friend and former Celebrity Traitors co-star Joe Marler, who was dressed to impress in drag attire.

When the timer began, it was clear the comedian was flustered as at one moment he was heard remarking: “F**k” before later commenting “s**t”.

However, Nick failed to successfully solve any Rubik’s Cube at all before revealing he had been making a pattern instead.

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He said: “Ok, right. I was a little bit distracted. But, in all honesty, I was still feeling a little bit guilty for betraying Joe all those months ago.

“So, instead of actually solving the Rubik’s Cubes, I actually just had something that I did want to say to Joe.”

As he turned the items over, the red colours on the blocks spelt out the word ‘sorry’, which earned a huge round of applause from the audience, along with a hug from Joe.

However, Davina quickly addressed the explicit curse words Nick had said during his 60 seconds. She commented: “Before we go any further, we just want to apologise if anybody heard any bad language there. It was a very high-stress situation.”

Nick seemed unaware that he had sworn on live TV as he asked whether or not the ‘bad language’ Davina was referring to was down to him. The BBC star added: “I’m not sure, let’s not go over it again!”

Throughout the fundraising evening, Davina was joined by multiple to help her co-host. At first, viewers saw Joel Dommett and Catherine Tate as Nan.

Nick later joined her for the second stint of the programme before she was finally joined by Katherine Ryan to finish the event.

During the programme, Davina welcomed Greg James to reveal the final amount he had raised over the past eight days on a mammoth cycle challenge. She told the radio star he’s raised a total of £4,225,939 as the crowd erupted into applause.

He remarked: “Wow! Thank you to everyone who donated, wow.” As he stood speechless, the audience started to chant his name in support.

Comic Relief: Funny For Money is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.

Both sides emerge from the tunnel after a lights show at the Vitality Stadium and we are just moments away from kick-off on the south coast. Here is a reminder of how the two sides line up tonight:

Bournemouth: Petrovic; Jiménez, Hill, Senesi, Truffert; Scott, Christie; Adli, Tavernier, Rayan; Evanilson.
Substitutes: Mandas, Brooks, Gannon-Doak, Smith, Diakite, Kroupi, Ünal, Tóth, Milosavljevic.

Manchester United: Lammens, Dalot, Yoro, Maguire, Shaw, Casemiro, Mainoo, Diallo, Fernandes, Cunha, Mbeumo.
Substitutes: Bayindir, Fredricson, Heaven, Malacia, T. Fletcher, Mount, Ugarte, Sesko, Zirkzee.

NEW YORK (AP) — Colombian President Gustavo Petro has been designated a “priority target” by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration as federal prosecutors in New York probe his alleged ties to drug traffickers, according to people familiar with the matter and records seen by The Associated Press.

DEA records show Petro has surfaced in multiple investigations dating to 2022, many based on interviews with confidential informants. The alleged crimes the DEA has investigated include his possible dealings with Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel and a scheme to leverage his “total peace” plan to benefit prominent traffickers who contributed to his presidential campaign. The records also suggest the use of law enforcement to smuggle cocaine and fentanyl through Colombian ports.

The “priority target” label is reserved for suspects DEA deems to have a “significant impact” on the drug trade. It’s unclear when the DEA gave Petro that designation.

Petro denied all ties to drug traffickers and maintained he never accepted their funds during his campaign. Writing on X Friday, he argued that U.S. legal proceedings would ultimately dismantle accusations from the Colombian far right, a group he claims is actually the one involved with traffickers.

Colombia’s Embassy in Washington downplayed what it called “unverified” and anonymous reports of preliminary law enforcement investigations against Petro.

“The reported insinuations have no legal or factual basis,” the embassy said in a statement.

The inquiry

In recent months, prosecutors in Brooklyn and Manhattan have been questioning drug traffickers about their ties to Petro and specifically about allegations the Colombian president’s representatives solicited bribes to block their extradition to the United States, according to one of the people who weren’t authorized to discuss the ongoing inquiry and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

The person said it wasn’t clear whether federal prosecutors have implicated Petro in any crime.

The investigation is focusing at least in part on allegations that representatives of Petro solicited bribes from drug traffickers at the Colombian jail La Picota in exchange for a promise that they not be extradited to the U.S., one of the people said.

Petro has consistently denied allegations of drug trafficking, particularly after Trump labeled him an “illegal drug leader” and the Treasury Department sanctioned him in late 2025 for alleged ties to the trade without offering evidence.

U.S. federal prosecutors declined to comment. The DEA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The federal inquiry was reported earlier Friday by The New York Times.

The inquiries into Petro are in the early stages, and it is not clear whether they will result in charges, according to another person familiar with the matter, adding the White House has had no role in the investigations.

The DEA records reviewed by the AP are based in part on tips from confidential sources that point to Petro’s possible involvement with a range of criminal groups that have dominated the South American drug trade for years. Those include Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel as well as the Cartel de los soles, or Cartel of the Suns, a term used to describe a loose network of corrupt, high-ranking military officers in neighboring Venezuela.

The records also cite a 2024 interview with an unnamed source who claimed Petro is utilizing former campaign aides and officials from state-run oil company Ecopetrol to launder presidential funds into foreign countries for Petro’s use upon completion of his presidency.

Ecopetrol President Ricardo Roa vehemently denied the allegations in a statement to AP, saying they “lacked all reality or logic.”

Family members under scrutiny

Petro, a former rebel leader, soared into office promising to reduce the country’s dependence on fossil fuels and reallocate state resources to addressing entrenched poverty.

A leftist politician known for winding sometimes incoherent speeches, he has regularly criticized the Trump administration over its support for Israel, bombing of drug boats in the Caribbean and likened the White House migration crackdown to “Nazi” tactics.

After one such outburst, at a pro-Palestinian demonstration outside the United Nations headquarters in New York, Trump retaliated by revoking Petro’s U.S. visa. He also briefly slapped high tariffs on Colombia over Petro’s refusal to accept deportation flights from the United States.

But more recently the two have shown signs of getting along. After a meeting at the White House in February, Trump described Petro as “terrific.”

Colombian authorities have for years been investigating members of Petro’s family for possible criminal acts.

His son, Nicolás Petro, was charged in 2023 with soliciting illegal campaign contributions from a convicted drug trafficker to fund a lavish lifestyle of expensive cars and homes. The younger Petro has pleaded not guilty and his father has said none of the money was used to fund his campaign.

The president’s brother, Juan Fernando Petro, has also been implicated in secret negotiations that allegedly took place with imprisoned drug traffickers to shield them from extradition to the U.S. in exchange for their disarmament.

Politics and cocaine

Politics in Colombia have long been tainted by cocaine, of which it is the world’s largest supplier. In the 1980s, drug lord Pablo Escobar was elected to the country’s Congress with the support of one of Colombia’s most traditional parties. A decade later, his rivals from the Cali cartel flooded the presidential campaign of Ernesto Samper with illegal donations.

The now defunct urban guerrilla group Petro belonged to, the 19th of April Movement, has long been suspected of taking money from Escobar’s Medellin cartels as part of its deadly siege of the Supreme Court in 1985. Petro did not participate in the attack, which left several guerrillas and around half the high court’s magistrates dead. Leaders of the group have always denied any links to the cartel.

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Goodman reported from Miami. Durkin Richer reported from Washington. Mike Sisak contributed from New York and Astrid Suárez from Bogotá, Colombia.

Defending champion Jeremiah Azu narrowly missed out on a medal in “one of the best 60m races of all time” at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Poland.

Twelve months after claiming the first global title of his career with world indoor gold in China, Azu missed out on a return to the podium by just 0.01 seconds as he clocked 6.46 seconds in Torun.

The 24-year-old always faced fierce competition as he sought to defend his title but displayed his medal credentials by improving his personal best to 6.45 in the semi-finals – a time which moved him to second on the British all-time list behind Dwain Chambers.

But American Jordan Anthony, who arrived at the championships as the fastest man this year, ran the joint-fourth fastest time in history as he improved to 6.41 to take gold ahead of Jamaica’s Olympic and world 100m medallist Kishane Thompson.

Thompson and American Trayvon Bromell both finished in 6.45 to complete the podium and deny Azu in a thrilling conclusion to the opening day of action.

“They didn’t let us down. These guys did what we expected them to do,” two-time world 110m hurdles champion Colin Jackson said on BBC TV.

“An electric performance – we’ve witnessed one of the best 60m races of all time so that’s a very special thing in itself, and Jeremiah Azu was in the mix.

“Azu got out very sharp – he’s one of the fastest starters in the world – but Anthony was out a little bit ahead and did what was necessary.”

Azu told BBC Sport: “It’s tough. I was very vocal about defending that World Athletics Indoor Championships 2026: Jeremiah Azu narrowly misses out on 60m medal and I fell short.

“It’s track and field – you win some you lose some. I’m still able to use this gift to try and inspire people. But it’s tough to take right now.”

Earlier on Friday, Olympic champion and indoor world record holder Keely Hodgkinson controlled her women’s 800m heat from start to finish to win in two minutes 00.32 seconds and reach the semi-finals, where she will be joined by team-mate Isabelle Boffey.

Ben Pattison, winner of world 800m bronze in 2023, won his heat in 1:47.48 to advance to the semi-finals of the men’s event, which also take place on Saturday morning.

Olympic and world medallist Georgia Hunter Bell secured her place in the women’s 1500m final by placing first in 4:12.09, but Jemma Reekie missed out after finishing fourth in her race.

Firefighters were able to stop the fire from spreading any further

Firefighters were called to a road in a Cambridgeshire village after receiving reports about a fire breaking out yesterday (Thursday, March 20). Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue were called at 3.34pm to a building fire on John Bends Way in Parson Drove.

Crews from Wisbech and March as well as the north roaming fire engine attended to the scene. Firefighters arrived to find a car on fire. It had already spread to nearby gardens and houses. Large clouds of black smoke could be seen in the village.

Crews used hose reels to stop the fire from spreading further and extinguished it. Crews had returned to their stations by 5.40pm. The cause of the fire has been confirmed to have been accidental.

A spokesperson for Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue said: “At 3.43pm on Thursday (19) crews from Wisbech, March and the north roaming fire engine were called to a building fire on John Bends Way in Parson Drove.

“Firefighters arrived to find a car on fire that had spread to nearby gardens and houses. The crews worked hard using hose reels to stop the fire from spreading further and extinguish it.

“The crews returned to their stations by 5.40pm. The cause of the fire was accidental.”

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Harry Maguire picked up his first red card of the season after being sent off during the 2-2 draw with Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium

Harry Maguire’s red card for Manchester United against Bournemouth will see him miss only one match – the game against Leeds United after the international break. The defender was judged to have pushed Evanilson in the penalty area, prompting referee Stuart Attwell to award a penalty.

However, after analysing the decision, former United striker Andy Cole disagreed with the decision, saying on Sky Sports: “I think the difference he is denying a goal scoring, just cause of the momentum Harry puts his arm out.

“I think its harsh. It’s a great touch so I’m not going down but in today’s game, for me it is a penalty. When we were playing, no chance.

“It’s [a] very physical [challenge] in today’s game. We’ll see with the another penalty in a minute that Harry Maguire gets sent off for, if I’m in that position I’m not going down so I don’t think it is a penalty.”

Meanwhile, United captain Bruno Fernandes shared a different view to Cole, claiming that Maguire’s challenge was a foul but also believed that Amad going down the other end, should have been given as a penalty.

“I know it’s difficult for the referee to give two penalties to the same team in one game but I don’t understand why VAR doesn’t get involved in that situation or with Harry [Maguire] because either one is a penalty and so is the other or none of them are,” the Portuguese said after the game.

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“I think the other situation is a penalty but I also think the one on Amad is a penalty and that could’ve changed the game.”

Amad went down in the box under a challenge from Truffert, moments before Bournemouth equalised to make it 1-1.

The Premier League Match Centre’s explanation for the penalty and red card read on X: “The referee’s call of penalty and red card for Maguire for the denial of an obvious goal scoring opportunity (DOGSO) was checked and confirmed by VAR – with it deemed to be a holding offence with no attempt to challenge for the ball.”

The 2-2 draw has kept United third in the table, with fourth‑placed Aston Villa four points behind them.

Maguire will serve just a one‑game suspension, with the Premier League deeming the incident as the denial of a goal scoring opportunity.

A three-game are given as a violent conduct or endangering an opponent.

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As a result, he will be available for the upcoming fixtures against Chelsea, Brentford and Liverpool.

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Campaigners from Abolish the Guga Hunt scaled the side of the NatureScot offices in Inverness and chained themselves to the roof at around 4am on Friday.

Animal rights activists dressed as gannets have tucked in to spend the night on top of a Government building in the Highlands following a dramatic protest against Scotland’s controversial guga hunt.

Campaigners from Abolish the Guga Hunt scaled the side of the NatureScot offices in Inverness and chained themselves to the roof at around 4am on Friday. Earlier today the Record shared a video of two men climbing to the highest ridge above the building’s inclined glass roof as they unfurled a banner reading “Abolish the Guga Hunt”.

A model of a battered and bloodied baby gannet – known locally as a “guga” – was also placed beside them on the roof. The activists appeared to have locked themselves in place and said they intended to continue the protest for as long as possible, adding: “We will stay here for days if we have to.”

Those on the roof have now settled in for the night as they shared footage of them getting cosy on Friday night. In the latest clip, one of the activists said: “So we’re just settling in for our first night on the roof of NatureScot. We’ve been up here for 15 hours so far. As you can see we have our fairy lights set up, we’ve got an incredible view.”

He continued: “We will do a post in the morning. Have to say we have been treated really well, the police have been amazing. Everyone we’ve dealt with has been amazing. I think everyone knows what we are fighting here is absolutely horrendous and has to stop – and has to stop now. Thanks for everyone’s support.”

NatureScot said this afternoon that the building had been closed for the rest of the day for “staff safety”. Police Scotland also confirmed that officers were in attendance with fire crews assisting officers also bring a high reach vehicle to the scene. The protest is aimed at highlighting the annual hunting of young gannets on the remote island of Sula Sgeir, about 40 miles north of the Butt of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides.

Each year, a small group of men from the Ness area of the Isle of Lewis travel to the uninhabited North Atlantic island to harvest young gannets under a special licence granted by NatureScot. The centuries-old tradition is allowed despite the birds being otherwise protected under wildlife laws. Campaigners say they want the Scottish Government to end the exemption.

Campaigner Jamie Moyes said the protest aimed to raise public awareness of the tradition. He said: “We have taken this action to increase public awareness of the plight of the poor baby gannets who reside on Sula Sgeir and are mercilessly slaughtered annually by the men of Ness due to the licence that is issued by NatureScot.

“This licence circumvents the laws that protect these birds from every other human on the planet. The men of Ness say this is part of their cultural heritage and should be preserved in the name of tradition, but we say hiding behind such excuses should not be tolerated in 2026.”

Robbie Kernahan, NatureScot’s Director of Green Economy, said: “We are aware of the protestors at NatureScot’s Great Glen House office. The building has been closed for the day for staff safety. This and previous vandalism incidents are mainly affecting our staff as they try to do their everyday jobs. There’s also increasing cost to taxpayers for repairs and increased security. NatureScot continues to open to be conversation about our work. The actions of protesters today is not, unfortunately, open or fair discussion.”

Last November, a petition was lodged by wildlife photographer Rachel Bigsby with the Scottish Parliament calling for changes to Section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to remove the power to grant licences allowing the hunt. The petition has closed to 50,000 signatures.

Activists claim the chicks are killed in front of their parent birds and have branded the practice “disgusting” and “morally wrong”. However, supporters say the hunt is a long-standing cultural tradition in the Hebrides and is carried out under strict limits.

Robbie Kernahan added: “We understand there are strong feelings about the guga hunt, and that some people will disagree with it taking place. The hunt is recognised in law under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, which makes specific provision for the granting of a licence for the purpose of providing food for human consumption in relation to the gannets on the Island of Sula Sgeir.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We were made aware of two men on the roof of a building in the Leachkin Road area of Inverness on Friday morning, 20 March, 2026. Officers are in attendance.”

A Scottish Fire and Rescue spokesperson said: “We were called to assist emergency service partners at an incident on Leachkin Road, Inverness at 10.12am on Friday, 20 March. Operations Control mobilised one appliance and a high reach vehicle to the scene, where crews remain in attendance.”

You can sign the gannet petition started by Protect the Wild here.

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National Highway are undertaking maintenance on the A64 between Welburn and the A168 Pickering interchange.

A spokesperson for National Highways said: “We are repairing damaged sections of the carriageway, removing trees affected by ash dieback and drainage works.

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“The A64 will be closed in both directions between A1237 (Hopgrove) and A169 (Pickering) overnight, 8pm-5am, from March 19-23.

“The Eastbound diversion will be via the A1237, A19, A170, A169 and A64, Westbound traffic follows the same route in reverse.

“This diversion is suitable for all vehicles, including HGVs. We’ll maintain access for residents and businesses throughout.

“Please allow extra time for your journey if travelling during these hours.

“Please remember that closures can change at short notice. You can check the latest information on our daily closures page or find live travel information on our Traffic England site. Our travel alerts give details of live incidents on our network.”

Around 700 dogs and cats have been rescued in a massive Los Angeles County animal welfare operation.

The Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control said it served a search warrant in Lake Hughes, California, Friday morning “for violation of animal welfare laws.”

An estimated 400 dogs and 300 cats were on the property and needed to be rescued, according to local officials. The Department of Animal Care and Control said it was the “largest number of dogs and cats” that it “has ever seized and may be the largest case ever in the United States.”

The animals were in the custody of Christine De Anda of Rock N Pawz Rescue, authorities said. It’s unclear whether any charges have been filed in connection with the rescue operation.

The Independent has reached out to Rock N Pawz for comment.

More than 70 animal care and control staff raced to rescue the animals with the help of spcaLA, Pasadena Humane and Kern County Animal Services.

“We’re working alongside DACC and partner agencies with a shared focus on getting these animals to safety and providing them with the care they need,” Pasadena Humane told The Independent. “As this ongoing effort unfolds, we are prepared to provide support in whatever way best serves the animals involved.”

Representatives from the Los Angeles County Departments of Public Works, Public Health and Regional Planning were also at the property for other alleged violations.

The Department of Animal Care and Control said in its press release posted on Facebook around 8 a.m. local time that the animals were being “triaged on site by veterinary medical staff.”

Animals in need of emergency care will be immediately taken to veterinary hospitals, and others will be taken to the department’s animal care centers, the press release said.

The department is experienced in these types of rescue operations.

In 2017, animal specialists rescued more than 100 venomous snakes and reptiles from an “animal hoarding situation,” the department said. In another operation that same year, the department rescued more than 7,000 birds during what it called the “largest illegal cockfighting raid in U.S. history.”

With the massive influx of dogs and cats from Friday’s operation, the department is working with rescue groups and other animal welfare agencies to transfer pets ready for adoption to make room for the rescued animals.

“We are urgently requesting the public’s help to support the rescue and rehabilitation of these dogs and cats,” said Marcia Mayeda, director of the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control.

In a follow-up Facebook post, the department asked for help with the rescued animals’ medical care, housing and other support they may need, urging the public to donate to the LA County Animal Care Foundation.