US Supreme Court lifts limits on third-country deportations - Punch Newspapers

The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed President Donald Trump’s administration to resume deporting migrants to countries other than their own without first giving them an opportunity to raise concerns about potential harm they could face. The court’s action temporarily put on hold a lower-court ruling that had restricted the administration’s so-called third-country deportation policy. The justices also agreed to hear the broader legal challenge in December, meaning Tuesday’s order does not finally determine whether the policy is lawful. The case centres on the administration’s policy of deporting migrants to countries where they are neither citizens nor necessarily have any previous connection. Reuters on Tuesday reported that more than 25,000 migrants had been deported to 29 countries under the policy, with the majority sent to Mexico. The administration has also carried out deportations to several African countries, including South Sudan, Uganda, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia and the Central African Republic. The policy allows migrants to be removed to third countries that provide credible diplomatic assurances that they will not be persecuted or tortured. For countries that have not provided such assurances, the policy provides for notice and an assessment of potential persecution or torture if the migrant raises such a concern.See more Punch stories on Google.Add Punch on Google The Supreme Court’s decision followed a ruling by a Boston-based federal district judge, Brian Murphy, who had found the Department of Homeland Security’s policy unlawful. The 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals on Sept. 18 largely upheld Murphy’s ruling, finding that migrants should have a meaningful opportunity to raise concerns about possible persecution or torture before being deported to a third country. The administration subsequently asked the Supreme Court to intervene. The court’s six-member conservative majority allowed the deportations to resume while the legal dispute continues. The three liberal justices — Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson — dissented. James Percival, General Counsel of the Department of Homeland Security, welcomed the decision. “A bad day for criminal illegals and open-borders activists alike,” Percival said in a social media post. However, Trina Realmuto, a lawyer for the migrants challenging the policy, criticised the ruling. Mystery over UK airbase scare after reports of no explosives found Zuckerberg, Pichai, others to meet Trump as AI safety pressure builds Trump denies offering Iran sanctions relief, release of frozen funds The court had “allowed the administration to resume sending people to third countries,” Realmuto said, arguing that some migrants could face persecution or torture without adequate notice or an opportunity to raise their concerns. The legal dispute began after the Department of Homeland Security moved to expand deportations of migrants who could not be returned to countries listed in their deportation orders. The administration has described third-country deportations as an important tool for removing migrants whose home countries refuse to accept them. In its emergency application to the Supreme Court, the Justice Department described the policy as “an essential tool to remove certain aliens, including some of the worst criminal aliens.” Opponents of the policy, however, have argued that it can also affect migrants who have lived in the United States for years and, in some cases, have protection against deportation to their countries of origin. The Supreme Court is expected to hear full arguments in December before issuing a final ruling on the legal questions surrounding the policy. The development came as Burundi separately announced that it was prepared to accept some people deported from the United States despite having no previous connection to the East African country. Burundi’s presidential spokesperson, Nancy Ninette Mutoni, said the country would accept deportees who were not facing prosecution and had no links to terrorism. “Receiving them requires serious planning,” Mutoni said, referring to arrangements for accommodation, food and integration into local communities. She did not disclose when the deportees would arrive or how many people Burundi had agreed to receive. Burundi joins several African countries, including Eswatini and South Sudan, that have received third-country deportees from the United States. The US administration’s policy has generated a wider legal and humanitarian dispute over the safeguards that should apply when migrants are sent to countries with which they have no established connection. Tosin Oyediran Tosin Oyediran is a journalist with Punch Newspapers, bringing over eight years of newsroom experience to his coverage of politics, health, advocacy, sports, and entertainment. Known for sharp interviews and human-centered reporting, his work focuses on public accountability, civic issues, and the stories shaping everyday lives.

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