Judge lifts order on Somalia TPS, clearing way for deportations

U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston lifted a stay on Friday that had blocked the Trump administration from ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali nationals, clearing the way for the government to move forward with terminating the designation. Burroughs cited a June Supreme Court ruling in Mullin v. Doe that limited judicial review of TPS termination decisions, saying it constrained her ability to keep blocking the action even though she found plaintiffs had made a compelling case of potential harm. The Trump administration announced in January it planned to end Somalia's TPS designation, with then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem citing improved conditions in the country. The case was brought by four Somali nationals and advocacy groups including African Communities Together, who had also raised a Fifth Amendment claim alleging the termination was motivated by racial and national-origin discrimination. According to sources at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, 2,471 Somali nationals currently hold TPS, with another 1,383 applications pending.