Photo: U.S. Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Victor Mancilla, via Wikimedia Commons (public domain). File photo, August 2021 — not a photo of the detainees in this case.
A federal judge in New York has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deporting Afghans detained in the United States to Afghanistan or Pakistan, after advocates and dozens of members of Congress warned that their lives would be at risk if they were sent back. Judge Valerie Caproni's order, issued on Tuesday, November 3, runs through Saturday, November 7.
The ruling pauses a removal plan that, according to court documents obtained by the Associated Press, would have put more than 150 Afghans held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in Louisiana on flights to Pakistan as early as Monday. Because the United States has no formal diplomatic relations with Afghanistan since the Taliban's return to power, Pakistan was listed as the destination for onward transfer to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
What the government told the court
At a hearing on Tuesday, government lawyers told the court that ICE had no chartered or commercial flights planned for deporting Afghan nationals to Afghanistan or to Pakistan at least through the end of the week, and that the agency books such flights weeks in advance. Judge Caproni's order requires officials to adhere to that position while the temporary order is in effect, meaning no removals of the detained Afghans to either country before it expires on Saturday.
The order is a temporary pause, not a final ruling on whether the deportations are lawful. It leaves the broader questions — including the legal status of individual detainees and the administration's wider removal practices — unresolved and open to further litigation after Saturday.
Why advocates say the risk is severe
Immigrant rights organisations have warned that Afghans returned to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan could face retaliation, persecution, torture or even death. Thousands of Afghans fled the country after helping the US military and aid groups during America's two-decade presence there, and many of those now in detention arrived through evacuation and resettlement routes after the fall of Kabul in 2021.
The concern was echoed in Congress. A letter led by California Democratic Representative Scott Peters and signed by 65 other members of the House and Senate told Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin that they were "extremely concerned that sending vulnerable people" back would expose them to "persecution, torture, or even death." The letter was sent on Monday, a day before the judge acted.
Part of a wider immigration fight
The ruling is the latest court setback for the administration's immigration crackdown, which has faced repeated legal challenges over removals to countries where detainees say they face danger. The administration has sought to expand deportations to third countries — nations with which migrants have no ties — and has argued that diplomatic assurances against persecution are sufficient protection. Courts have repeatedly insisted on a meaningful chance for detainees to raise safety concerns before removal.
For the more than 150 Afghans at the centre of this case, the immediate question is what happens when the order expires on Saturday. If the government schedules flights after that date, advocates are expected to return to court to seek a longer block. If it does not, the detainees remain in custody while their individual cases proceed — a reprieve, but not a resolution.
Sources: Associated Press via Business Standard, November 4, 2026; ABC News via Hasht-e Subh, November 4, 2026; ETV Bharat (Associated Press), November 4, 2026. The court order is temporary and expires Saturday, November 7.