U.S. Supreme Court Lets Trump End Temporary Protected Status for Haitians and Syrians

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the Trump administration to end Temporary Protected Status for migrants from Haiti and Syria, clearing the way for deportation of hundreds of thousands.

The court, by a 6-3 majority, vacated lower-court orders that had blocked ending the TPS program, allowing the Department of Homeland Security to move quickly to end protection for about 350,000 Haitians and about 6,000 Syrians.

ABC News

In the ruling, conservative Justice Samuel Alito said the courts do not have authority to review the administration’s decisions relating to TPS, and he wrote that the statute governing the program "clearly prohibits" such judicial review.

The decision also came as the U.S. State Department warned against travel to both Haiti and Syria due to the spread of violence, crime, terrorism, and kidnapping, according to the reporting in the sources.

The Supreme Court’s 6-to-3 ruling overturned decisions issued by federal judges in New York and Washington that had halted the administration’s efforts to end TPS for more than 350,000 people, including 61,000 Haitians and 6,100 Syrians, according to Reuters as cited by سكاي نيوز عربية.

Three liberal justices dissented, and the dispute centered on whether courts can review executive decisions about TPS, with Alito arguing that courts cannot review those determinations.

Al Jazeera

Immigration rights groups framed the decision as a threat to families who built their lives in the United States, and Global Refuge president and CEO Krish O'Mara Vignarajah said, "It is a deeply painful day for hundreds of thousands of families".

The Haitian Times, quoting the Associated Press, reported that immigration lawyers said the administration ended protections "illegally and hastily" and that the decision was "tinted with racism," while federal authorities denied any racist motive.

The ruling exposes hundreds of thousands of TPS holders to the risk of deportation, and Euronews said the decision exposes "hundreds of thousands" of individuals to that risk as the Department of Homeland Security moves to end protections.

Euronews reported that the court’s decision enables the Trump administration to implement its policy of ending temporary protection status for migrants fleeing violence and natural disasters, including about 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians.

In a separate development tied to the same day’s Supreme Court action, the court also supported the Trump administration’s position that the government has authority to deny asylum seekers when U.S.-Mexico border crossings are overwhelmed and cannot handle additional requests, according to the reporting in الشرق للأخبار.

The Global Refuge statement said the decision opens the door for the administration to revoke legal status and work authorization of about 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians, while also warning that the court did not conclude that Haiti or Syria were safe countries.