A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from deporting approximately 3,000 Yemeni refugees, ruling that their temporary protected status (TPS), which was set to expire on Monday, must be extended while a lawsuit challenging the termination proceeds.
Court Ruling Details
Judge Dale E. Ho in Manhattan issued an emergency order, stating that the TPS holders are ordinary, law-abiding individuals whom the U.S. government had previously determined could face threats if returned to Yemen, a country embroiled in ongoing armed conflict. The ruling temporarily halts the administration's efforts to end protections for Yemeni refugees, who have been granted TPS multiple times.
Background on TPS Terminations
The Trump administration has terminated TPS for people from nine countries, including Haiti, Venezuela, and Ethiopia, as part of its broader immigration crackdown. Before Judge Ho's ruling, protections for Yemeni refugees were due to end on Monday, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. TPS allows individuals to remain in the U.S., work legally, and obtain travel authorization without fear of removal.
Criticism of Administration Actions
In his 36-page decision, Judge Ho criticized former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for failing to follow the established congressional process for altering or rescinding TPS. He particularly highlighted a December social media post where Noem recommended a full travel ban on countries she described as flooding the U.S. with 'killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies.' On February 13, Noem announced the termination of TPS for Yemen, stating it was 'contrary to our national interest.'
Judge Ho wrote, 'TPS holders from Yemen are not “killers, leeches, and entitlement junkies.”' He noted that among the 2,810 current TPS holders and 425 applicants are a pregnant 33-year-old Detroit woman due to give birth this month, whose unborn child has a congenital heart condition untreatable in Yemen, and a 50-year-old former human rights worker in Brooklyn targeted by Houthi-aligned militias.
Reactions
The Department of Homeland Security responded, stating, 'Temporary means temporary, and the final word will not be from activist judges legislating from the bench.' Razeen Zaman, director of immigrant rights at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, applauded the ruling, saying, 'The court has made clear that humanitarian statutes like TPS cannot be used as a deportation pipeline.' Zaman added that Homeland Security had determined it was unsafe for Yemeni refugees to return but terminated their protection anyway, and that the ruling 'affirms that protection must be based on facts and conditions on the ground, not on the political appetite to end it.'
Plaintiffs' Voices
The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund included statements from plaintiffs in the lawsuit. One plaintiff, using a pseudonym for safety, wrote that Yemeni TPS holders are 'doctors, engineers, and pilots like myself, and also drivers, deli workers, and countless other people who contribute meaningfully every day, supporting not just our own families but the broader fabric of society.' He added that their presence 'represents resilience, skill, and dedication – values that strengthen the nation as a whole.' Another woman, also pseudonymous, called the decision 'a lifeline for my family' and 'the moment we finally breathed a sigh of relief after months of existential anxiety.'
