Legal Setback for Trump: Federal Judge Halts Deportation of South Sudanese Nationals

A federal judge in Boston has issued an emergency injunction blocking the Trump administration from terminating the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for South Sudanese nationals. The decision freezes a deportation order that was set to take effect on January 5, 2026. The ruling comes after human rights organizations argued that the Department of Homeland Security's claim of "renewed peace" in South Sudan contradicts UN reports highlighting ongoing armed conflict, famine, and displacement.

The court's intervention highlights a significant legal challenge to President Trump's broader immigration agenda, which aims to end TPS programs for citizens of several nations, including Syria, Venezuela, and Haiti. While the administration insists these protections were always meant to be temporary, advocates argue that forced returns to South Sudan would be "catastrophic" given the current humanitarian crisis and regional instability.