NEW YORK, USA (CMC) — Immigration advocates are warning that Caribbean and other immigrants are at risk from masked United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents after a federal district judge on Monday issued a preliminary injunction halting the ban on masked agents.

Judge Mae D’Agostino of the Northern District of New York ruled that “settled law establishes that federal, not state, authorities make the policies that animate the enforcement of federal immigration laws”.

In June, the Donald Trump administration sued to block New York’s law prohibiting federal immigration agents from wearing masks and requiring them to display identification.

“Federal agents wearing masks creates a dangerous environment where officers can operate with impunity and without transparency, putting New Yorkers in danger,” Murad Awawdeh, president of the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), told the Caribbean Media Corporation.

“It means that masked agents can continue to abduct people off the street without having to identify themselves by name or badge,” said Awawdeh, who is also the chief executive officer of NYIC, an umbrella organisation of over 200 immigrant and refugee groups in New York.

“While we are outraged by the judge’s injunction, we applaud the decision to ensure an end to 287 (g) agreements and contracts with local jails to detain immigrant New Yorkers.”

He said that the era when New York police officers are officially deputised to do ICE’s “dirty work” is finally over, thanking Governor Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James for their “steadfast efforts to uphold the public safety of all New Yorkers”.

Last week, Hochul launched the Office of Immigrant Trust (OIT) aimed at not colluding with federal immigration enforcement, such as ICE and Customs and Border Patrol.

In making the announcement, Hochul and James said that OIT will be charged with investigating potential unlawful collusion by state and local government employees with federal immigration enforcement.

The governor and James also sent letters to the 12 local law enforcement agencies in New York that currently have agreements with ICE, informing them that state law requires they unwind the agreements by August 25, 2026.

After the US District Court for the Northern District of New York on Monday enjoined enforcement of New York’s mask ban, Hochul and James said in a joint statement that they “stand firm in our belief that masked agents do not make New York safer”, adding that their “offices are reviewing all legal options at this time”.

The district court, however, denied the Trump administration’s motion for a preliminary injunction blocking New York’s ban on 287(g) agreements between local law enforcement agencies and ICE.

“As we have said from the start, New York’s ban on 287(g) agreements is legal and will keep our communities safe,” Hochul and James said.

“Local law enforcement should be focused on local matters, and New York taxpayers should not have to foot the bill for any collaboration with ICE,” they added.