US Government Seeks Supreme Court Ruling on Deportation of Syrian Migrants

US Department of Justice Files Emergency Appeal with Supreme Court

The United States Department of Justice has submitted an emergency appeal to the Supreme Court, seeking permission to proceed with plans to terminate deportation protections for approximately 6,000 Syrian migrants residing in the country. The request was made on Thursday as part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to restrict migration to the US.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is being terminated for Syrians due to changes in their home country’s circumstances. TPS allows foreign nationals already in the US to remain in the country and work legally, provided that their homeland experiences instability or danger.

The Trump administration has previously announced plans to terminate TPS protections for individuals from 12 countries, including Haiti, Myanmar, Somalia, and Yemen. The Department of Justice is seeking to lift a lower court decision issued in November, which blocked the administration’s move to end TPS for Syrians.

This latest development marks the latest attempt by the Trump administration to restrict migration to the US. In previous instances, the administration has successfully appealed to the Supreme Court on two occasions, paving the way for the removal of TPS from hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan nationals living in the US.

In 2012, TPS was initially granted to Syrians due to the ongoing civil war in their country. The conflict ended in December 2024, with the ouster of former leader Bashar al-Assad. The Trump administration has since argued that Syria no longer meets the criteria for an ongoing armed conflict, thereby eliminating the need for TPS.

A US District Court judge had previously blocked the Trump administration from suspending TPS for Syrians, while a US Circuit Court of Appeals declined to block that order in November.

Source: Al Jazeera