Guatemala says ready to receive deported children from US despite court order

GUATEMALA CITY: Guatemala is prepared to receive around 150 unaccompanied minors a week from the United States, President Bernardo Arevalo said on Monday (Sep 1), a day after a US judge temporarily halted the deportation of 10 Guatemalan children.

The 10 minors, who had already been boarded on planes, were returned to shelters run by the US Office of Refugee Resettlement after the court responded to an emergency pre-dawn appeal, according to a filing by President Donald Trump’s administration.

Arevalo told reporters his government had been coordinating with Washington on receiving the children.

“But the decision to send them, the number, and the pace is one that rests with the American government, and as you can see, there’s currently a legal dispute,” he said.

The order by District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan applies for 14 days and could cover hundreds of Guatemalan minors currently in US custody. Lawyers for the children, aged 10 to 17, argued deportation would violate their protections under US law and expose them to potential abuse if returned.

The children had crossed the border without parents or guardians, often intending to reunite with relatives in the US. Under US law, they are entitled to heightened protections while asylum or immigration claims are processed.

Trump, who returned to the White House in January, has pledged to deport more migrants than his predecessors. Courts have already ruled that some of his accelerated removals breach constitutional rights to due process.