US court allows Trump administration to remove deportation protections for Afghans, Cameroonians
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Immigration advocacy group Casa had earlier filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Homeland Security over the temporary protected status termination.
PHOTO: REUTERS
WASHINGTON – A federal judge on July 21 lifted an order preventing the Trump administration from stripping temporary protected status (TPS) for thousands of Afghans and Cameroonians in the United States.
The Trump administration moved in April to end TPS for Afghans and Cameroonians in the US, saying conditions in Afghanistan and Cameroon no longer merited the protected status.
The move affected an estimated 14,600 Afghans and 7,900 Cameroonians.
Immigration advocacy organisation Casa filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Homeland Security, and the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit granted an administrative stay on the termination until July 21.
In July 21’s ruling, the appeals panel agreed with a lower court that Casa has stated “a plausible claim for relief with regard to the alleged ‘preordained’” decision to terminate TPS.
“At this procedural posture, however, there is insufficient evidence to warrant the extraordinary remedy of a postponement of agency action pending appeal,” the panel wrote.
The US Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the TPS programme, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. REUTERS
