Order expires Saturday; ICE reports no planned or confirmed flights
A federal judge in New York temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s administration’s plan to deport detained Afghans to Afghanistan or Pakistan on Tuesday. Judge Valerie Caproni issued the order after advocates and dozens of members of Congress warned that the detainees’ lives would be at risk.
Caproni’s order expires Saturday, and no deportations were planned before then. The order applies to the administration’s plan to deport detainees to Afghanistan or Pakistan.
At Tuesday’s hearing, the government’s lawyer told the court that Christopher George, deputy assistant director for Enforcement and Removal Operations in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said ICE “had no planned or confirmed chartered or commercial flights for the purposes of deporting Afghan nationals” to Afghanistan or to Pakistan, “at least to the end of this week.”
The government also told the court that ICE books these flights weeks in advance. Caproni’s order blocked the administration’s plan to deport detainees to Afghanistan or Pakistan until it expires Saturday.
Lawmakers and organizations raised safety concerns
Rep. Scott Peters, a California Democrat, led a letter signed by 65 other members of the House and Senate. The letter was sent Monday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.
The lawmakers said they were “extremely concerned that sending vulnerable people” would expose them to “persecution, torture, or even death.” The warning concerned the administration’s plan to deport detainees to Afghanistan or Pakistan.
Immigrant-rights organizations also warned that those deported could face retaliation from the Taliban. Thousands of Afghans fled persecution and feared for their lives after helping the U.S. military and aid groups in Afghanistan.