US judge blocks Trump administration from deporting nearly 600 Guatemalan children

A federal judge in US issued an emergency temporary restraining order Sunday blocking the Trump administration from deporting nearly 600 unaccompanied Guatemalan children.

The US District Court for the District of Columbia granted the 14-day restraining order following a last-minute lawsuit by the National Immigration Law Center, which argued that the abrupt deportations violated federal laws protecting unaccompanied minors.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General Drew C. Ensign said that all of the minors who were on planes had been "deplaned" and were being returned to Office of Refugee Resettlement custody.

The lawsuit challenged violations of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, Immigration and Nationality Act and the Constitution, which ensure that unaccompanied children receive full immigration proceedings, including hearings before immigration judges and protections against return to countries where they might face abuse or persecution.

Efren C. Olivares, Vice President of Litigation and Legal Strategy at the National Immigration Law Center, criticized the US administration.

"In the dead of night on a holiday weekend, the Trump administration ripped vulnerable, frightened children from their beds and attempted to return them to danger in Guatemala," said Olivares.

"We are heartened the Court prevented this injustice from occurring before hundreds of children suffered irreparable harm. We are determined to continue fighting to protect the interest of our plaintiffs and all class members until the effort is enjoined permanently," he added.