WASHINGTON (CN) - The Supreme Court put legal protections for migrants living in the United States on the docket Monday, agreeing to review whether the Trump administration could revoke temporary designations for Syria and Haiti.
In a short order, the justices deferred a decision on the administration's two emergency applications, keeping the migrants temporary protected status in place for now. The high court said it would hear oral arguments next month.
Though the justices had previously authorized such revocations for Venezuelan migrants, a lower court found Syrians would still face dangers if forced to return to their home country. But the Department of Homeland Security argued that any ongoing armed conflicts did not pose a serious threat to the thousands of Syrian nationals who have protected status in the U.S.
In December, the State Department issued a travel advisory for Syria, warning of ongoing risks of terrorism and violence. One Syrian national said her family's neighborhood was hit by airstrikes shortly before DHS revoked her protected status.
"In northern Syria, clashes between Syrian transitional-government forces and regional Kurdish-led forces have escalated, putting civilians at great risk of harm," the Syrians facing deportation wrote in a brief before the court. "And in the last several days Syria has been caught in the crossfire as the military conflict in Iran has threatened to unleash a full-scale regional war."
The Trump administration asked to block the lower court's order two days before bombing Iran.
Over 6,100 Syrian nationals have temporary protected status in the U.S. - seven of whom sued DHS over the revocation. They urged the justices to uphold the lower court order preserving the immigration status of people who have lived lawfully in the country for years.
"These temporary protected status recipients are highly sought-after doctors and medical professionals, reporters, students, teachers, business owners, caretakers, and others who have been repeatedly vetted and by definition have virtually no criminal history," the Syrians wrote. "The government apparently needs urgent authority to send them to a country in the middle of an active war."
Syrian nationals received temporary protected status during the Obama administration in 2012 during the brutal crackdown by the country's president at the time, Bashar Assad. The designation was extended due to Assad's continued rule and the ongoing armed conflict.
In 2024, Assad was overthrown and fled to Russia, ending his family's 53-year rule. Last September, then-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the termination of Syrians' temporary protected status. She argued Assad's ouster and new diplomatic efforts disqualified the country for protected status.
Last year, the Supreme Court granted two similar emergency applications from the government relating to Venezuelan migrants. Noem scolded the Second Circuit for not following the justices' lead in regards to Syrians, calling the decision indefensible.
"The lower courts brushed aside those stay orders because they 'contained no explanation,' and following them would require 'speculation,'" U.S. Solicitor General John Sauer wrote in the emergency application. "But at a minimum, this court's decisions in the stay posture 'inform' like cases."
Unlike rulings on the merits docket, orders on emergency applications have not traditionally been seen as precedential. However, some justices have suggested that emergency orders be given similar treatment.
The White House called for the extraordinary step of granting certiorari before judgment - agreeing to review the appeal before the lower courts - to prevent further attempts at blocking Noem's authority.
"Otherwise, lower courts will continue to impermissibly bypass an unambiguous judicial-review bar and displace the secretary's judgment on matters committed to her unreviewable discretion by law; continue to twist APA review to substitute their own judgment for the secretary's; and continue to impede the termination of temporary protection that the secretary has deemed contrary to the national interest, tying those decisions up in protracted litigation with no end in sight," Sauer wrote.
The Syrian migrants argued such action wasn't necessary, noting the proceedings in the lower courts are scheduled to begin on March 11.
Source: Courthouse News Service
