The U.S. Supreme Court has allowed the Trump administration to move forward with deporting a group of eight immigrants currently held at a U.S. military base in Djibouti back to South Sudan. In a brief, unsigned order, the justices reaffirmed an earlier decision that stayed a lower court’s ruling, effectively giving the administration permission to carry out the removals.
The case began after U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Massachusetts ruled that the government could not deport immigrants to “third countries” — nations not named in their removal orders — without first ensuring that the deportees would not face torture. His decision, issued in April and reaffirmed in May, had temporarily stopped the deportations.
The eight individuals, reportedly from Cuba, Vietnam, and Laos, were initially set to be flown to South Sudan, a country currently under a U.S. travel advisory due to conflict and instability. When Murphy intervened, the plane was rerouted to Djibouti, where the men have been detained ever since.
Arguing before the Supreme Court, Solicitor General D. John Sauer said the district judge’s requirements were obstructing immigration enforcement and disrupting U.S. foreign and national security efforts. The administration asked the justices to clarify that their previous stay allowed the government to proceed with third-country removals while the broader legal fight continues.
The Court’s conservative majority agreed, stating that Murphy’s injunction could no longer be enforced because the justices had already stayed it in full. Justice Elena Kagan concurred, noting that although she had opposed the earlier stay, the lower court was bound to follow it.
Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, warning that the ruling could lead to the deportation of immigrants to a nation where they risk torture or death. Sotomayor criticized the Court for intervening again instead of allowing the case to proceed through normal judicial channels.
