With temporary protections for some Afghans who should expire, the court of appeal intervenes: NPR

Washington – A court of appeal on Monday evening intervened on Monday to maintain protections for nearly 12,000 Afghans which allowed them to work in the United States and to be protected against deportation after their expiration as part of the Trump administration efforts to make more people who are eligible for the country’s retirement.

The Ministry of Internal Security in May said that it ended the temporary protected status for 11,700 people from Afghanistan in 60 days. This status had allowed them to work and meant that the government could not expel them.

Casa, a non -profit immigrant defense group, continued the administration on the revocation of the TPS for the Afghans as well as for the people of Cameroon – those who expire on August 4. A federal judge last Friday allowed the trial to continue but did not grant the Casa’s request to maintain the protections in place while the trial.

The Casa called on the case on Monday and won a stay while retaining the temporary status of the Afghans who was to expire on Monday. The Court of Appeal did not give any reason for its decision, but said that it would decide what to do quickly. The stay is in place for a week and the court asked the two parties to deposit memories this week. The Ministry of Internal Security did not immediately respond to a request for comments sent by email.

The number of Afghans protected by the TPS is relatively low compared to the overall number of Afghans – around 180,000 – who have fled Afghanistan and have come to the United States since the Taliban regained control of the country in 2021. It is not clear how much of these 11 7,000 covered by TP have requested or received other forms of protection, such as asylum.

But the removal of the status of protection for the Afghans affected a sensitive string with many defenders and volunteers because of the suggestion that he is sure for the Afghans – many of whom helped the United States during his two decades war there – to return home.

“Given that so many those who lose their protections were used alongside American forces, we must honor this service by confirming our promise to provide security and ensure that they have the possibility of prospering here. We urge Congress to protect Afghans by providing them with a permanent status – a commitment that has been expected for a long time,” said Jennie Murray, President and CEO of the National Immigration Forum.

As the Secretary of Internal Security, Kristi Noem, ended the temporary protected status for the Afghans, the ministry wrote in the decision that the situation in their country of origin improved.

“The secretary has determined that, on the whole, there are notable improvements in security and the economic situation so that the return of Afghan nationals in Afghanistan does not constitute a threat to their personal security due to armed conflicts or extraordinary and temporary conditions,” said the May announcement.

Temporary protection status can be granted by the Secretary of Internal Security to people of various nationalities in the United States. They cannot be expelled and can work legally, but they have no way to citizenship.

The status is intrinsically precarious because it is up to the interior security secretary to regularly renew the protections – generally every 18 months. The first Trump administration attempted to remove many of these temporary protected statutes, but was largely thwarted by the courts.

This time, the Trump administration has evolved even more aggressively to eliminate the protections, which makes more people eligible for the withdrawal of the country. The administration pushed to remove the temporary protected status of people from seven countries, Venezuela and Haiti constituting the largest piece of the hundreds of thousands of people losing their protections.

Critics say that successive administrations have essentially put these rubber these renewals, and people covered by what is supposed to be temporary status end up staying in the United States for years.