A Biden-appointed federal judge abruptly blocked the Trump administration from flying out hundreds of illegal alien children over Labor Day weekend after immigrant advocacy groups rushed to court, claiming Trump was carrying out a mass deportation in the dead of night.

The emergency order by U.S. District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan froze a pilot program the administration said would reunite nearly 700 kids with parents or guardians in Guatemala.

By the time the judge intervened, charter buses had already rolled up to planes in Harlingen and El Paso and, in some cases, children were seated on board awaiting departure.

Justice Department lawyer Drew Ensign told the court, "These are not removals under the statute. These are repatriations. All of these children have parents or guardians in Guatemala who have requested their return."

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Advocacy groups rejected that explanation, with the National Immigration Law Center's (NILC) Efrén Olivares firing back that "it is a dark and dangerous moment when our government chooses to target orphaned 10-year-olds."

The lawsuit, LGML v. Noem, was filed just after 1 a.m. Sunday, accusing the Trump administration of skirting a 2008 law that immigrant-rights groups often cite to shield minors from removal. 

Named as defendants were Attorney General Pam Bondi, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

FEDERAL JUDGE HALTS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION DEPORTATION OF EIGHT MIGRANTS TO SOUTH SUDAN

The lead plaintiff was a 10-year-old girl identified only by her initials whose mother had died in Guatemala. Judge Sooknanan scolded the Trump administration over the timing, saying during the emergency hearing: "I have the government attempting to remove minor children from the country in the wee hours of the morning on a holiday weekend, which is surprising, but here we are."

The Trump administration insists the flights were lawful reunifications negotiated with Guatemala’s government, while advocacy groups argue the kids are being rushed out without hearings or the chance to pursue asylum. 

Guatemala’s foreign minister confirmed the country is ready to take the children, with President Bernardo Arévalo calling it a "moral and legal obligation."

Unaccompanied children who arrive illegally in the United States are often handed over to the HHS' Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) while their immigration cases are prepared. Those from Guatemala often request asylum to stay in America.

For now, hundreds of Guatemalan minors remain in the U.S. while the legal battle plays out. According to reporting from The Associated Press, family members of many of the migrants had gathered at airports across the Central American nation in anticipation of their arrival.

The entire emergency motion can be read here.

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The DOJ, HHS, ICE, the State Department, NILC, and the Guatemalan Embassy did not immediately return Fox News Digital's request for comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The Alabama Crimson Tide were shocked on Saturday afternoon, as the No. 8-ranked team fell to unranked Florida State, 31-17, to kick off the 2025 college football season. 

The massive upset was a major storyline in college football, especially considering the fear factor the Crimson Tide have had over the sport for years. 

But Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel said that general fear of Alabama is no more for the other programs they face on the schedule. 

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"In the past, you walk in facing an Alabama team, you probably got a little fear," Manziel, who knows all about Alabama having played his college ball at Texas A&M, said on the "Nightcap Show" with Shannon Sharpe and Chad Johnson. "This is ‘Bama. The team has been a dynasty, you got a little fear. That fear aspect of what Alabama is – completely gone. Ain’t nobody scared of them boys. Not Vandy (Vanderbilt), not Kentucky, not nobody. Nobody’s walking in seeing Alabama on the schedule and having any kind of shake, any kind of fear, nothing. 

"They’ve been getting wiped the last couple of years. You say that buyout is deep, but not going to sit here and let this stand for sure. They’ll go find it in the woods somewhere."

Manziel isn’t the only one to call out the Crimson Tide. 

ESPN STAR WARNS ALABAMA FANS AMID TEAM'S UPSET LOSS TO FLORIDA STATE

ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith sent a warning to ‘Bama fans following the loss to the Seminoles, saying the Nick Saban days are long gone. 

"I’m sorry folks. I really am. But it just seems to be as if the days of @AlabamaFTBL - Nick Saban’s @AlabamaFTBL — is looooonnngggg gone. Sacks surrendered. Dropped passes. A QB who’s not a real scrambler/runner, and doesn’t appear to have a strong enough arm to throw on the run," he wrote on X. "Maybe this turnover by Lucas of @FloridaState, but I doubt it."

Seminoles quarterback Thomas Castellanos ran for 78 yards with a touchdown and threw for 152 passing yards in the victory over the Crimson Tide, ending their impressive 23-game season-opener win streak. 

Saban is the legendary head coach who won six national championships with Alabama, including those in 2015, 2017 and 2020. But he retired in 2024, with the Crimson Tide pivoting to Kalen DeBoer to fill some accomplished shoes in Tuscaloosa. 

But DeBoer’s debut season was a failure in the eyes of the Crimson Tide faithful, having missed the College Football Playoff. In 2023, Saban’s final year, the Crimson Tide lost to the Michigan Wolverines in the Rose Bowl, missing out on a shot at competing in the national title game again. 

With this loss to the Seminoles, Alabama’s schedule only gets harder moving forward in 2025. They will face Georgia next month, while also having to see other powerhouses like Tennessee, LSU, South Carolina and Oklahoma in consecutive weeks. 

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