Arabic version: الديمقراطيون يطالبون بضمانات بشأن الترحيل إلى دول ثالثة

According to The Guardian, Democratic lawmakers are calling for formal protections after the US supreme court lifted restrictions on deportations of immigrants to countries other than their own. The court agreed to hear the issue on its merits in December.

The conservative-dominated court granted an emergency request from the Trump administration to suspend a lower-court ruling. That ruling had restricted, but not completely prohibited, the practice known as “third-country removals.” Lawmakers said safeguards were needed where deported people could face danger or torture, and to preserve due-process rights.

Representative Rob Menendez called the decision “indefensible,” saying taxpayers should not fund removals of people from “the only home they’ve ever known” or allow unilateral deportations to be fast-tracked. Representative Lois Frankel wrote on X that Congress must act, arguing that no one should be sent to a country that is not their own without basic due process and a meaningful opportunity to raise fears about their safety.

The Trump administration has defended third-country deportations as necessary when the home countries of people targeted for removal refuse to accept them. The lawmakers’ response focused on establishing clearer steps to prevent removals when a person’s life could be at risk and to ensure they have an opportunity to present safety concerns before deportation.