WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed the Trump administration to resume deporting migrants to countries other than their countries of origin without first allowing them to challenge their removal on grounds that they could face persecution or torture.
The six conservative justices temporarily blocked a lower-court ruling that had required the administration to provide migrants with sufficient notice and an opportunity to raise safety concerns before sending them to a third country.
The Supreme Court did not explain its reasoning in the emergency order. The three liberal justices – Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson – dissented.
The order will remain in effect while the court considers the broader legal challenge. The justices are scheduled to hear oral arguments in December.
The case concerns the administration’s policy of rapidly removing migrants to countries where they are not citizens.
The administration has argued that the lower-court restrictions created logistical and diplomatic difficulties, including cancelled deportation flights and additional costs.
Solicitor General D. John Sauer also said the restrictions had hindered the removal of people the government considers dangerous.
READ ALSO: US Supreme Court Rejects Trump Bid to Restrict Birthright Citizenship
The policy has already been used to deport more than 25,000 migrants to third countries. Some of the countries involved include nations facing political instability and humanitarian crises.
The ruling came a day after UN human rights experts urged Washington to halt third-country deportations, warning that migrants could face abuse, torture and persecution in countries unrelated to their nationality.
The Supreme Court’s action marks the latest legal development in a case that has seen lower courts restrict the administration’s third-country deportation policy.
A federal appeals court had ruled earlier this month that migrants must have an opportunity to raise safety concerns before being rapidly removed.
