CHICAGO, Sept 19 (Reuters) - In a chaotic scene at an immigration detention facility in the Chicago suburbs, Illinois Democratic candidates running for Congress said they were tear-gassed, shot with pepper balls and shoved to the ground by federal agents on Friday while protesting against President Donald Trump’s immigration surge into the city.

Since a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids began earlier this month, protesters have gathered outside the facility in Broadview, Illinois, in mostly peaceful demonstrations. But the standoff with ICE agents sharply escalated on Friday, with agents body-slamming protesters, firing tear gas and releasing pepper balls that coated protesters in a cloud of white powder.

Kat Abughazaleh, a Democratic congressional candidate, said she was tear-gassed and shoved twice by federal agents while sitting down with other protesters to block vehicle access to the facility on Friday morning. Abughazaleh posted footage on social media that showed heavily armed agents lifting her and throwing her onto the ground, which she said injured her hand and left her with large bruises on her right side.

“It was painful, but it could have been worse,” she said.