On Saturday morning, a private jet carrying Hayam El Gamal and her five children turned back over Denver after a federal judge in San Antonio halted their deportation to Egypt, just hours after immigration agents had re-detained the family in Colorado.
The abrupt reversal marked the latest flashpoint in a weeks-long legal tug-of-war over whether the Trump administration can remove a family that federal courts have twice ordered released while their asylum claims proceed. El Gamal, her 5-year-old twins, and three older children had spent 10 months in detention at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley — the longest known hold of any family during Trump’s second term — before a judge freed them earlier in the week.
Attorney Eric Lee, who represents the family, said the re-detention violated a Thursday order from the Western District of Texas blocking ICE from detaining or removing the El Gamals. He told Al Jazeera the administration had “kidnapped” the family in defiance of that ruling, adding that Biery’s emergency intervention Saturday morning prevented what he called a “brazen violation of separation of powers.”
The Guardian reported that Lee learned the family was en route to Egypt when he saw them on a private jet departing Denver; he filed an emergency motion mid-flight, which Biery granted before the plane could cross international airspace. The Texas Tribune noted the judge’s decision echoed his own earlier ruling and one by Magistrate Judge Elizabeth Chestney, both of which had affirmed the family should remain free pending asylum proceedings.
Sources agree the family’s detention originated from the June 2025 arrest of El Gamal’s then-husband, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, who threw Molotov cocktails at a pro-Israel rally in Boulder, Colorado, injuring over a dozen people and causing the death of an 82-year-old woman. Soliman faces attempted murder and federal hate crime charges; El Gamal divorced him shortly after his arrest and has said she had no prior knowledge of the attack, a claim supported by an FBI agent’s testimony under oath.
For more on this story, see Federal appeals court blocks Trump order suspending border asylum.
Despite no charges against her or the children, the Trump administration moved swiftly to expel the family, with then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem praising a July 2025 court dismissal of their release lawsuit by calling them “rightfully in ICE custody for removal” and likening El Gamal to her “terrorist husband.” The White House, in a post on X following Soliman’s arrest, had pledged immediate expulsion, asserting the family was in the U.S. Illegally on tourist visas.
The family’s legal team has long criticized conditions at Dilley, citing medical neglect, spoiled water, and food infested with bugs or rot. Prior to their release, El Gamal’s lawyers said she was denied an ultrasound for severe pain, her 5-year-old went untreated for 13 cavities, and her 16-year-old son with appendicitis was told to take Tylenol instead of receiving surgery. ICE did not respond to requests for comment on these allegations from any of the three outlets.
The case has drawn attention as a flashpoint in the broader conflict over executive authority in immigration enforcement, with lawyers arguing the repeated defiance of court orders undermines judicial independence. Lee told the Texas Tribune that allowing such actions to stand risks eroding “the most basic principles of separation of powers” and endangers the rights of anyone subject to federal detention.
This follows our earlier report, Appeals Court Blocks Contempt Probe Into Trump Officials Over Immigration Case.
Why did ICE re-detain the family after a judge had ordered their release?
ICE acted on the assertion that the El Gamals were in the U.S. Illegally and subject to removal, despite a federal court order from the Western District of Texas explicitly blocking their detention or deportation while asylum proceedings continue.
What legal basis did the family’s lawyers apply to block the deportation?
They filed an emergency motion citing violation of a federal court order, which Judge Fred Biery granted, ruling the family must remain in the U.S. Pending an immigration judge’s decision on their asylum claim.
Has the family been charged with any crime related to the Boulder attack?
No. Hayam El Gamal and her five children have not been charged with any crimes; an FBI agent testified under oath that there was no evidence they knew of or supported Soliman’s plan.
