The U.S. Supreme Court has granted the Trump administration permission to proceed with deporting eight immigrants currently held at a U.S. military base in Djibouti to South Sudan. In a brief, unsigned order, the justices reaffirmed an earlier stay of a lower court’s ruling, clearing the way for the removals to move forward while the legal battle continues.
The case centers on a decision issued by U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy in Massachusetts, who ruled that the government could not deport individuals to “third countries” — places not listed in their removal orders — without first ensuring they would not face torture. His April ruling, reaffirmed in May, temporarily halted the deportations.
The eight men, reported to be from Cuba, Vietnam, and Laos, were originally scheduled to be flown to South Sudan, a country the U.S. currently warns against traveling to due to violence and instability. After Murphy’s ruling intervened mid-flight, the plane was diverted to Djibouti, where the men have remained detained for months.
Before the Supreme Court, Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued that Murphy’s requirements were hindering immigration enforcement and interfering with U.S. foreign policy and national security interests. The administration asked the Court to make clear that its earlier stay permitted third-country removals while the underlying case is still being resolved.
The Court’s conservative majority agreed, concluding that Murphy’s injunction could not stand in light of the prior stay. Justice Elena Kagan concurred in the outcome, noting that although she had disagreed with the earlier stay, lower courts were obligated to abide by it.
Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented, expressing concern that the ruling could expose the men to the risk of torture or grave harm in South Sudan. Sotomayor criticized the Court for intervening once again instead of allowing the dispute to move through the usual judicial process.
The decision highlights a difficult intersection of law, policy, and human vulnerability — one where courts weigh legal boundaries, governments assert authority, and the lives of real people remain suspended in the balance.
