A group of eight migrants is being held in the small African country of Djibouti after a judge said the Trump administration’s attempt to fly them to South Sudan “unquestionably” violated a court order, President Trump confirmed Thursday.
Mr. Trump lashed out at U.S. District Judge Brian Murphy, who ordered the government to “maintain custody and control” of the migrants on Tuesday. Attorneys say the migrants were put on a flight to violence-plagued South Sudan, allegedly violating an earlier order by Murphy requiring migrants to be given certain due process rights before they’re deported to a third country. The Trump administration says the eight men have serious criminal records.
“A Federal Judge in Boston, who knew absolutely nothing about the situation, or anything else, has ordered that EIGHT of the most violent criminals on Earth curtail their journey to South Sudan, and instead remain in Djibouti,” Mr. Trump said in a Truth Social post. “He would not allow these monsters to proceed to their final destination.”
Djibouti is a small country on the Horn of Africa on the continent’s east coast, located across the Gulf of Aden from the Arabian Peninsula. Two U.S. officials told CBS News the migrants are being held at a U.S. military base in the country.
Mr. Trump said “a large number of ICE Officers” were also left with the men.
Murphy has ordered the Trump administration to give six men “reasonable fear” interviews to screen them for any concerns about being harmed in a third country. If they do not satisfy the reasonable fear standard, the government must give them at least 15 days to challenge their removal. Murphy says the men can be held either in the U.S. or abroad, as long as the government maintains custody over them.
The back-and-forth began Tuesday, when lawyers for some of the deportees told Murphy a group of migrants was being flown to South Sudan. They warned the migrants face “a strong likelihood of irreparable harm” if they are deported to South Sudan, a 14-year-old country racked with violence and political instability.
During a hearing Wednesday, Murphy said the attempted deportations were “unquestionably violative” of his April order requiring the government to give deportees notice of their final destination and a chance to challenge their removal. “They did not offer any opportunity to object,” the judge said.
The Department of Homeland Security later identified the eight men as nationals of Cuba, Laos, Mexico, South Sudan, Myanmar and Vietnam. In a statement, DHS listed out criminal convictions for all eight of the deportees, including murder, lascivious acts with a child and sexual assault — describing them as the “Worst of the Worst.”
The Trump administration has blasted Murphy’s ruling, with the DHS alleging he is “trying to force the United States to bring these criminals back.” Mr. Trump wrote on Thursday: “The Judges are absolutely out of control, they’re hurting our Country, and they know nothing about particular situations, or what they are doing.”
The government’s push to ramp up deportations — in some cases sending migrants to places other than their country of origin — has drawn pushback from judges and attorneys, who argue the swift removals deprive migrants of due process. In several court districts, judges have restricted the administration from using the Alien Enemies Act to rapidly deport Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador.
contributed to this report.
