INTERNATIONAL — June 13, 2026
US Court Orders Resumption of Green Card, Citizenship Processing for Afghans and Other Migrants
The decision leaves travel restrictions intact while more than 1,100 evacuees remain in Qatar and lawmakers press to block their relocation to third countries.
The Ehtebar Desk — originates with Khaama Press — 2 min read
A US federal court has directed the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to resume processing of green cards, citizenship applications, and other immigration benefits for nationals of 39 countries, including Afghanistan and Iran.
The order reverses a suspension that originated from an executive order issued by President Donald Trump citing national security concerns. The ruling applies to individuals already present in the United States and covers benefits such as work authorization.
Existing travel bans and visa restrictions remain in force and are unaffected by the decision. Many Afghans outside the country therefore continue to face barriers to immigration processing.
More than 1,100 Afghan evacuees remain at Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar awaiting resettlement. In a related development, 83 members of Congress have urged Secretary of State Marco Rubio to halt relocation of Afghan refugees to third countries including the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
USCIS is complying with the court order regarding the suspended applications.
Read the original reporting at Khaama Press →
Reliability assessment
Single source provides direct attribution to official USCIS statement, specific court order details, named officials (Marco Rubio), concrete numbers (83 members of Congress, 1,100 evacuees) and checkable locations
The source language mixes facts with framing or advocacy wording. Khaama Press: "thousands of Afghan nationals continue to face uncertainty", "significant barriers", "drawn criticism"; these phrases introduce mild emotional framing and negative value judgments on the policies and their impacts without neutral sourcing.
Independent web corroboration
A separate web search returned 8 matching reports. A selection:
An Obama-appointed judge criticized the Trump administration on Thursday night, issuing an order intended to force the government to resume processing green card and work permit applications for immigrants from 39 countries under President Donald Trump's travel ban. The order, from U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr., came a week after an initial ruling overturning U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) pause on processing a range of applications, which plaintiffs said had been ignored by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
- What do the recent U.S. immigration changes mean for Afghans? – IRAPsupport.iraplegalinfo.org
The U.S. government will review immigration applications that have already been approved for Afghans who came to the U.S. since 2021. <strong>On June 5, 2026, a federal court said this policy was illegal.</strong>
- US court blocks Trump's immigration pause for 39 countries: Details | Immigration News - Business Standardbusiness-standard.com
policies that had effectively frozen the processing of green cards, work permits, asylum applications and citizenship cases for nationals of 39 countries, marking a significant legal setback for one of the administration's ... In a ruling issued last week, Chief Judge John J. McConnell Jr. of the US District Court · for the District of Rhode Island ordered US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to resume processing hundreds of thousands of immigration applications that had been placed on hold for months.
- Judge strikes down Trump’s ‘anti-immigrant’ policies blocking asylum and green card applicants | The Independentindependent.co.uk
Court ruling restores critical immigration decisions for people from 39 countries impacted by travel ban
Across the newsrooms
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International — USCIS, Afghan evacuees, green cards, Trump executive order, Camp As Sayliyah
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