WASHINGTON — The US Supreme Court on Saturday temporarily barred the Trump administration from deporting a group of Venezuelan migrants it accused of being gang members under a rarely used wartime law, but the government urged the justices to lift their order.

The court issued the decision after lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) asked it to intervene on an emergency basis, saying dozens of Venezuelan migrants faced imminent deportation without the judicial review the justices previously ordered.

“The Government is directed not to remove any member of the putative class of detainees from the United States until further order of this Court,” the justices said earlier in a brief, unsigned decision.

Conservative Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito publicly dissented from the decision, issued around 12:55 a.m. (0455 GMT).

The Trump administration filed a response on Saturday afternoon urging the justices, once they review the matter further, to formally reject the ACLU’s request on the migrants’ behalf.

The White House responded that President Donald J. Trump would stay the course in his immigration crackdown but gave no immediate indication that the administration would defy the Supreme Court, appearing for now to avert a potential constitutional crisis between coequal branches of government.

Although it was unclear where the Venezuelan migrants were headed, the Trump administration already has deported to a maximum-security prison in El Salvador more than 200 Venezuelan and Salvadoran men it claims are gang members.

The deportees included Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran immigrant whom the administration admitted was removed by mistake, igniting an outcry over its immigration policy.

Many of the migrants’ lawyers and family members say they were not gang members and had no chance to dispute the government’s assertion that they were.

“We are confident in the lawfulness of the Administration’s actions and in ultimately prevailing against an onslaught of meritless litigation brought by radical activists who care more about the rights of terrorist aliens than those of the American people,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

The case has raised questions about whether Mr. Trump, who has shown a willingness at times to defy court decisions since returning to office on Jan. 20, will comply with limits set by the nation’s highest court.

MEN LOADED ABOARD BUSES
The high court majority issued Saturday’s stay after ACLU lawyers filed urgent requests for immediate action in multiple courts, including the Supreme Court, after reporting that some of the men already had been loaded aboard buses and were told they were to be deported.

The ACLU said the administration was poised to deport the men using a 1798 law that historically has been employed only in wartime without affording them a realistic opportunity to contest their removal — as the Supreme Court had ordered.

US Solicitor General D. John Sauer, in a written filing, asked the court to lift its temporary order halting the deportations to first allow lower courts to resolve the “adequacy of notice that designated enemy aliens receive.”

Barring that action, Mr. Sauer wrote, the court should clarify its order to say that it “does not preclude the government from removing detainees pursuant to authorities other than the Alien Enemies Act.”

Mr. Sauer said the government provided advance notice with “adequate time” to the detainees prior to starting deportations — though he did not say how much time was given.

Lee Gelernt, the ACLU’s lead attorney in the case, said in a statement earlier on Saturday: “These men were in imminent danger of spending their lives in a horrific foreign prison without ever having had a chance to go to court. We are relieved that the Supreme Court has not permitted the administration to whisk them away the way others were just last month.”

In an audio recording posted on TikTok, several men said they were Venezuelans falsely accused of being gang members and held at Bluebonnet immigration detention center in Texas. They said they were taken by bus to a regional airport late on Friday but then returned.

The recording has not been verified by Reuters. An earlier post on TikTok from the same account was cited in court filings on Friday.

More than 50 Venezuelans had been scheduled to be flown out of the country — presumably to El Salvador — from the immigration center, the New York Times cited two people with knowledge of the situation as saying.

Among the detainees was Diover Millan, 24, a Venezuelan who came to the US in 2023, had no criminal record and was granted temporary protected status, according to his wife, who declined to give her full name for fear of retaliation.

“I’m scared,” she said her husband, who was arrested in Atlanta last month, told her. The men were told they would be being taken to the CECOT prison in El Salvador but the bus turned back after one of the officials got a phone call, she said.

Elected last year on a promise to crack down on migrants, Trump invoked the 1798 Alien Enemies Act in a bid to swiftly deport accused members of Tren de Aragua, a criminal gang originating from Venezuelan prisons that his administration labels a terrorist group.

Mr. Trump and his senior aides have asserted their executive power grants them wide authority on immigration matters, testing the balance of power between branches of government.

The administration scored one victory on Friday when an appeals court put on hold a threat by District Judge James Boasberg of contempt charges.

Mr. Trump previously called for Boasberg’s impeachment following an adverse ruling, prompting a rare rebuke from US Chief Justice John Roberts.

HABEAS CORPUS RELIEF
The Venezuelans’ deportation would be the first since the Supreme Court’s 5-4 ruling that allowed removals under the 1798 law while specifying that “the notice must be afforded within a reasonable time and in such a manner as will allow them to actually seek habeas relief in the proper venue before such removal occurs.”

Habeas corpus relief refers to the right of detainees to challenge the legality of their detention. It is considered a bedrock right under US law.

The Supreme Court did not indicate how much notice should be provided. Lawyers around the country have asked that the migrants be given 30 days’ notice to allow them to contest their deportations.

Asked about the planned deportations on Friday, Mr. Trump said he was unfamiliar with the particular case but added: “If they’re bad people, I would certainly authorize it.”

“That’s why I was elected. A judge wasn’t elected,” he told reporters at the White House. — Reuters

CHINA’S ambassador to the United States, Xie Feng, has urged Washington to seek common ground with Beijing and pursue peaceful coexistence while warning that China stood ready to retaliate in the escalating trade war.

Speaking at a public event in Washington on Saturday, details of which were posted on the Chinese embassy’s website, Mr. Xie said tariffs would devastate the global economy and drew a parallel between the Great Depression and tariffs imposed by the US in 1930.

Referring to concepts in traditional Chinese medicine like the need to balance the opposing forces of yin and yang, Mr. Xie said harmony should guide relations between the world’s two largest economies.

“A good traditional Chinese medicine recipe usually combines many different ingredients which reinforce one another and creates the best medical effect,” he said.

“Likewise, the earth is big enough to accommodate both China and the US,” he said. “We should pursue peaceful coexistence rather than collide head-on, and help each other succeed rather than get caught in a lose-lose scenario.”

The trade war has all but frozen the mammoth trade between the world’s two largest economies with tariffs over 100% in each direction and a suite of trade, investment and cultural restrictions.

China’s top shipbuilding association on Saturday attacked a US plan to apply port fees on China-linked ships.

While Japan, Taiwan and others are already in talks or preparing to negotiate with Washington over President Donald J. Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, there is currently no high-level dialogue planned with China.

Mr. Trump said on Friday the US is having good conversations privately with China amid the two countries’ trade war.

“By the way, we have nice conversations going with China,” he told reporters at the White House. “It’s, like, really very good.” He did not offer additional details.

China has said the US should show respect before any talks can take place.

Mr. Xie said China opposed the trade war and would retaliate to any country imposing tariffs on it. — Reuters

PARIS — European governments urgently need to ease tensions with the United States over President Donald Trump’s tariffs, LVMH Chief Executive Officer Bernard Arnault said on Thursday, adding it would be “Brussels’ fault” if no solution is found.

“European countries should try to manage these negotiations, and not leave them to bureaucrats,” he told the group’s annual shareholder meeting.

Without mentioning Mr. Trump, Mr. Arnault linked current market turmoil to global trade tensions and said LVMH’s business would suffer.

US tariffs could include a 20% charge on European fashion and leather goods and 31% for Swiss-produced watches if fully applied. Last week, Mr. Trump paused his reciprocal tariffs on most countries for 90 days, but maintained a general 10% levy.

In January, Mr. Arnault — who is France’s richest man — praised Trump for boosting economic growth and entrepreneurship and referred to a “wind of optimism” after attending his inauguration.

Since then, investor concerns over the possible economic damage of Mr. Trump’s trade policies have dragged LVMH’s shares 36% lower, reducing the group’s market capitalization by more than 100 billion euros ($114 billion).

Sector rival Hermes overtook LVMH as France’s most valuable company this week, though LVMH had regained the top position by Thursday’s market close. Around half of the LVMH’s shares are owned by the Arnault family.

To try to lessen the impact of US tariffs, Mr. Arnault repeated on Thursday that he would consider moving more production to the United States, where the group makes 25% of its annual sales.

He said Brussels would be to blame if no deal is negotiated and Europe loses some of its production, and that other companies were also considering increasing US manufacturing.

“I’ve already heard of several companies who are thinking about shifting more production to the United States, but you couldn’t say this is the fault of the companies. This would be Brussels’ fault,” he said.

The European Commission, the European Union (EU) executive, has said that the US has yet to set out its negotiating position, while US officials have not commented on talks with the EU. 

Analysts have said any production shifts would likely be limited and would do little to mitigate tariff risks.

Apart from three Louis Vuitton workshops and some Tiffany jewelry-making sites, LVMH has little production capacity in the United States. Much of its business comes from selling “made in France” luxury leather goods, champagne and spirits.

Production problems at its high-profile Texas facility have meant the site has been consistently ranked among the worst-performing for Louis Vuitton globally, Reuters has reported. — Reuters