(AFP) – A US judge on Wednesday ordered a temporary stay on any efforts to deport the family of a man suspected of carrying out a Molotov cocktail attack on Jewish protesters at the weekend. The move is the latest in a growing list of confrontations between President Donald Trump’s administration and the independent court system.
The wife and five children of Mohamed Sabry Soliman were detained by immigration officials as law enforcement probed the fiery assault on a peaceful march in Boulder, Colorado on Sunday. Twelve people were hurt when an assailant lobbed homemade incendiary devices and shouted “Free Palestine,” calling those present “killers.” Soliman — who authorities said had entered the United States on a tourist visa and had subsequently applied for asylum — was arrested at the scene.
Trump’s administration was quick to pledge to deport his family, who are reportedly from Egypt. On Tuesday the White House appeared to taunt the suspect’s family, writing on social media: “Six One-Way Tickets for Mohamed’s Wife and Five Kids.” “Final Boarding Call Coming Soon.” That came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday pledged to rid the US of “terrorists” who were in the United States temporarily on visas.
Judge Gordon Gallagher on Wednesday granted a temporary restraining order against Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons, and the local ICE chief. “Defendants SHALL NOT REMOVE Hayem El Gamal and her five children from the District of Colorado or the United States unless or until this court or the Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit vacates this order,” the edict says.
The legal ruling is the latest in a long line of stays and restraining orders the courts have issued in response to increasingly aggressive moves by the administration to remove non-citizens, including to foreign prisons. The Trump administration systematically accuses judges who oppose his immigration decisions of usurping his presidential national security powers.
Soliman is due to appear in court in Colorado on Thursday. He is expected to formally face federal hate crime charges, as well as state charges of attempted murder.
© 2024 AFP
