BOSTON _ The Trump administration urged a Boston federal judge to lift a ban on the enforcement of the president's order prohibiting citizens of seven countries from entering the U.S., saying the court measure is no longer needed because no one is being detained.
It's the first official response from the government to a litany of lawsuits that followed Trump's Jan 27 order, which roiled global travel when he barred entry to the U.S. of citizens from seven countries. Individuals, organizations, politicians and some states called it unconstitutional and un-American in the lawsuits.
"There is no reason the court cannot allow the emergency order to expire," acting Assistant U.S. Attorney General Chad Readler wrote along with other government lawyers. No one who sued is being detained any longer, so the injunction is moot, the U.S. said.
Many of the lawsuits across the country claim Trump's order violates the Constitution by discriminating against Muslims based on their religion. On Thursday, a federal judge in New York extended a temporary ban _ to Feb. 21 _ prohibiting the government from deporting people based on Trump's order.
Some people remain in limbo though.
An Iranian scientist has been stuck in Zurich because Swiss Air, based on a directive from Customs and Border Protection, refused to let her board a plane to Boston. Samira Asgari sued and called the airline's move "a flagrant violation" of Burroughs' order.
Asgari says she holds a valid J-1 visa to enter the U.S. to perform research related to pediatric tuberculosis.
A representative from Swiss Air's legal department said that Customs and Border Protection informed the airline that it could be fined and refused permission to land in the U.S. if Asgari were on board, according to court records filed Thursday in Boston federal court.
According to a Jan. 27 State Department memo, all valid immigrant and non-immigrant visas of nationals from the seven countries were revoked, with some exceptions for diplomats. Asgari's J-1 visa wasn't among those exceptions.
