An appeals court temporarily blocked the Trump administration from revoking temporary protected status for thousands of people from Afghanistan living in the United States.

The Trump administration was planning to revoke Afghans’ temporary protected status as part of a broader push to revoke the status for hundreds of thousands of immigrants living legally in the U.S. with TPS. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, however, blocked the administration from withdrawing temporary protected status for one week.

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The Biden administration extended TPS to Afghans in 2023, citing a “deepening humanitarian crisis” and “economic collapse” in Afghanistan since the U.S. military’s 2021 withdrawal and the Taliban takeover of the country. 

The administration has said these protections are temporary and that Afghanistan’s security situation has improved. Opponents have said the country is still unsafe, as those who are sent back to Afghanistan will face the Taliban. 

The TPS program is different from the more permanent “special immigrant visas,” which were issued to Afghans who worked for the U.S. military, typically as translators, in the U.S. war against the Taliban.

Members of Congress, including Republicans, have been apprehensive about the administration ending TPS for Afghans due to the threat of the Taliban.

Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) said in May that the Taliban “have made their thirst for retribution against those who helped the United States clear. Until they demonstrate clear behavioral changes, I urge the administration to continue prioritizing the safety of the Afghan men and women who risked their lives to help our troops.”

The Trump administration has moved in recent weeks to terminate protections for hundreds of thousands of migrants from Honduras, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Haiti, Cameroon, and Afghanistan. 

This includes around 348,000 Haitians, who were allowed into the U.S. due to political instability and extreme violence in their country, around 348,000 Venezuelans who left under Nicolas Maduro’s dictatorship and the country’s deep economic crisis, and around 52,000 Hondurans and about 3,000 Nicaraguans who have had long-term TPS due to widespread damage from a 1998 hurricane.

The administration has faced other setbacks in court. A district judge blocked the government’s effort to remove Haitians’ TPS. The Supreme Court ruled that the administration could end TPS for thousands of Venezuelans.

AFGHANS WHO HELPED US DURING WAR PLEAD FOR AN EXEMPTION FROM TRUMP TRAVEL BAN

President Donald Trump’s push against TPS and his attacks on humanitarian programs are emerging as one way for him to deliver his campaign promise to execute the “largest deportation in American history.”

Since Trump took office, however, polls have indicated that Americans are offering mixed to negative feelings toward the administration’s immigration policies. In the case of removing legal routes to immigration, 60% of Americans disapprove of the suspension of most asylum applications and 59% disapprove of ending TPS, according to a June poll from the Pew Research Center.