Judge Blocks U.S. from Deporting Pro-Palestinian Activists After Blasting Trump

A federal judge has temporarily stopped the U.S. government from deporting several pro-Palestinian student activists. He ruled their arrests appeared to be an unconstitutional targeting of their political views. U.S. District Judge William G. Young issued the order this week. He also criticized the previous administration of President Donald Trump. In his written decision, Judge Young called the government's actions "authoritarian." He said the Department of Homeland Security seemed to single out the non-citizen students for deportation because they protested against Israeli policy. The activists were arrested on visa charges after participating in campus demonstrations. The judge found the timing and method of the arrests suspicious. He stated the government must first prove it is not deporting them for their political speech. The ruling is a temporary block. It allows time for a fuller legal review of the activists' claims. The Department of Justice has not yet commented on the decision.