The Trump administration has urged the U.S. Supreme Court to allow the deployment of the National Guard in Chicago to protect federal personnel and federal property amid protests over immigration enforcement in the area.

Solicitor General D. John Sauer, Trump’s top Supreme Court lawyer, urged the justices to step in immediately after a judge ruled last week that National Guard troops sent to Illinois by President Donald Trump to combat crime can remain in the state but can’t patrol or deploy to protect federal property. A federal appeals court had refused to put the judge’s order on hold.

U.S. District Judge April Perry said she found no convincing evidence that a «danger of rebellion» exists in Illinois amid Trump’s immigration enforcement push.

TRUMP’S NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS CAN STAY IN ILLINOIS BUT FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS DEPLOYMENT

Sauer wrote in the emergency filing that the judge’s ruling «intrudes on the president’s authority and needlessly puts federal personnel and property at risk.»

The Trump administration argues in its filing that the case represents a «disturbing and recurring pattern» in which federal officers enforcing immigration law are met with «prolonged, coordinated, violent resistance that threatens their lives and safety and systematically interferes with their ability to enforce federal law.»

«Federal agents are forced to desperately scramble to protect themselves and federal property, allocating resources away from their law enforcement mission to conduct protective operations instead,» the filing states.

«Receiving tepid support from local forces, they are often left to fend for themselves in the face of violent, hostile mobs. Confronted with intolerable risks of harm to federal agents and coordinated, violent opposition to the enforcement of federal law, the president lawfully determines that he is unable to enforce the laws of the United States with the regular forces and calls up the National Guard to defend federal personnel, property and functions in the face of ongoing violence,» it says.

The Supreme Court has asked for the opposition’s response to the Trump administration’s emergency filing by 5 p.m. on Monday. The court is then expected to offer  that the administration file a reply.

The plea to the nation’s top court comes as 11 protesters were arrested Friday outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Broadview, a west Chicago suburb that has become a frequent flashpoint for demonstrations against federal agents in recent weeks.

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker is opposed to federal deployments in Chicago. (Kamil Krazaczynski/AFP via Getty Images)

The filing also further escalates Trump’s standoff with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who have staunchly opposed deploying troops. They have called any deployment unconstitutional and insisted the city is not facing the kind of crime crisis the White House claims.

Pritzker fired back at the filing on X, accusing Trump of trying to «invade Illinois with troops» and vowing to defend the state’s sovereignty.

«Militarizing our communities against their will is not only un-American but also leads us down a dangerous path for our democracy,» Pritzker wrote. «What will come next?»

Trump has already deployed the National Guard to Los Angeles, Washington D.C., and Memphis, Tenn., to help curb violent crime. He has said the moves caused crime to plummet in those areas. 

Earlier this week, the president floated the idea of invoking the Insurrection Act to tackle violent crime in Chicago and urged Pritzker to «beg for help» from the federal government.

‘UNTETHERED FROM REALITY’: LAWYERS FOR TRUMP, OREGON, SPAR OVER NATIONAL GUARD DEPLOYMENT IN COURT CLASH

«I could use it if I wanted to. I could use it — that’s a very simple answer. I’m allowed to use the Insurrection Act,» Trump said, after the question was put to him by a reporter aboard Air Force One. 

The Insurrection Act of 1807 gives the president authority to deploy active-duty military or federalized National Guard troops inside the country in limited circumstances, such as to suppress civil disorder, rebellion or obstruction of federal law. It has been invoked about 30 times by roughly 10 presidents, most recently by George H. W. Bush during the 1992 Los Angeles riots, according to The Associated Press.

But on Monday, Trump said he didn’t have to «go there yet» because his administration is «winning on appeal.»

President Donald Trump wants the National Guard to protect federal personnel and federal property amid protests over immigration enforcement in Illinois. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP)

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«You know, we lose with radical-left judges at the lower level, but we’re winning on appeal. So we’ll see what happens,» Trump said.

The conservative-dominated court has handed Trump repeated victories in emergency appeals since he took office in January, after lower courts have ruled against him and often over the objection of the three liberal justices. 

The court has allowed Trump to ban transgender people from the military, claw back billions of dollars of congressionally approved federal spending, move aggressively against illegal immigrants and fire the Senate-confirmed leaders of independent federal agencies.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Aferrado a un acantilado de casi 300 metros en los imponentes Alpes Pónticos, el Monasterio de Sümela parece desafiar a la gravedad y al tiempo. Fundado en el siglo IV d.C. por los primeros cristianos que llegaron a las costas del Mar Negro, este santuario no solo es una joya arquitectónica, sino también un testigo privilegiado de la historia. A lo largo de los siglos vio caer y resurgir imperios: desde la grandeza romana y bizantina, pasando por el poder otomano, hasta la consolidación de la Turquía moderna.

El origen del monasterio está envuelto en misterio y mito. Según la leyenda, en el año 386 d.C., dos monjes griegos llamados Bernabé y Sofronio llegaron hasta esta remota y agreste región guiados por una visión de la Virgen María. La aparición les reveló que había un icono sagrado, pintado por el apóstol Lucas y escondido entre las montañas.

Finalmente, los monjes hallaron una cueva donde encontraron el valioso retrato de la Virgen y el Niño Jesús, conocido como Panagia Sumela. Ese lugar se transformó primero en sitio de peregrinación y, siglos después, en el actual monasterio.

“Mientras tanto, nadie sabe con certeza si la historia del origen del monasterio es verdadera o un mero mito”, describe CNN Travel al lugar. Pero sin dudas el relato ha dotado a Sümela de un aura de santidad, atrayendo durante siglos tanto a fieles cristianos como musulmanes.

Uno de los mayores atractivos de Sümela es su asombrosa arquitectura. El complejo, tallado sobre una cornisa rocosa, parece una obra imposible de la naturaleza o el fruto de una inteligencia artificial. Incluye varias edificaciones: capillas, patios, biblioteca, viviendas, un campanario, acueducto, manantial de agua sagrada y la célebre Iglesia Rupestre.

Todo ello forma un conjunto que desafía la gravedad, fusionando piedra y fe en un escenario espectacular.

Miles de visitantes llegan cada año. Muchos atraídos por la majestuosidad de los frescos paleocristianos y la belleza del entorno, más allá de la devoción religiosa. Un aliciente adicional que ha incrementado el interés turístico es la inclusión de Sümela en la Lista Indicativa de la UNESCO para ser considerado Patrimonio Mundial.

El monasterio funcionó activamente como comunidad religiosa y centro de peregrinación hasta el siglo XX. Durante la ocupación otomana, los sultanes —a pesar de profesar el islam— respetaron la libertad religiosa de los cristianos y concedieron generosas donaciones a los monjes. Levent Alniak, director de museos y sitios históricos de la provincia de Trabzon, señaló a CNN Travel: “Los sultanes consideraban Sümela un lugar sagrado y ayudaron al monasterio dándoles donaciones y más tierras a los monjes”.

El siglo XX trajo convulsiones decisivas para el destino de Sümela. Tras la caída del Imperio Otomano y la guerra civil que enfrentó a turcos y griegos, la zona se despobló de su ancestral comunidad ortodoxa. En 1923, un intercambio masivo de población obligó a la mayoría de los monjes y fieles griegos a trasladarse a Grecia. Temiendo saqueos durante el éxodo, muchos tesoros del monasterio fueron enterrados en lugares ocultos del Valle de Altindere, con la esperanza de recuperarlos algún día.

La reliquia más preciada, el icono de la Panagia Sumela, fue hallada y llevada finalmente a Grecia, donde se venera hoy en el Monasterio de Nea Sumela, en el norte del país. Otros objetos sagrados acabaron en museos o colecciones privadas fuera de Turquía.

El abandono del complejo entre 1920 y 1960 propició el vandalismo, los destrozos y la pérdida de muchas obras artísticas. “Durante muchos años, aquí no hubo suficiente control y hubo mucho vandalismo”, relata el restaurador Senol Aktaş.

El monasterio se convirtió en destino de buscadores de tesoros, al igual que fue objeto de leyendas sobre los poderes curativos de los fragmentos de sus frescos. “La Virgen María también es una persona sagrada para el pueblo musulmán. Así que los habitantes de la zona vinieron, se rascaron la cara, sobre todo los ojos, hirvieron los trozos de pintura y bebieron esta agua pensando que los bendeciría. No sabemos si esta historia es cierta, pero eso es lo que dice la gente’, explicó a CNN Travel, Öznur Doksöz, guía en Sümela desde la década de 1980.

Afortunadamente, el Estado turco intervino en la década de 1970. El Ministerio de Cultura y Turismo impulsó la restauración y recuperación de Sümela como patrimonio nacional. En las décadas siguientes, se mejoró el acceso para el creciente flujo de turistas y peregrinos.

Un hito sobresaliente fue la reanudación de ceremonias religiosas: el 15 de agosto de 2010, el arzobispo de Constantinopla celebró el primer oficio ortodoxo en 88 años, recuperando una tradición que ahora se repite cada año.

Uno de los legados artísticos más valiosos de Sümela son sus frescos. El monasterio conserva obras de distintas épocas: los murales exteriores, de los siglos XVIII y XIX, y los interiores, mucho más antiguos, realizados en el siglo XIII. En ellos destacan grandes imágenes de Jesús y la Virgen María en el techo de la Iglesia Rupestre, rodeados en las paredes por representaciones de ángeles, apóstoles y santos, como el dramático retrato de San Ignacio devorado por leones.

La restauración de estos frescos es minuciosa y continúa abierta al público en los meses de verano, cuando expertos eliminan grafitis y daños de etapas de abandono. “Estamos intentando eliminar pintando sobre los grafitis con un estilo y colores similares a los que usaron los artistas originales”, revela Senol Aktaş sobre este delicado proceso.

Los frescos ocultos, descubiertos tras siglos de olvido, incluyen escenas espectaculares sobre el cielo y el infierno, la vida y la muerte, y demuestran el carácter único de este santuario.

La restauración arquitectónica implicó enormes desafíos técnicos: “Siempre hemos tenido problemas con la caída de rocas”, explica Levent Alniak. Alpinistas especializados aseguraron el acantilado con cables y mallas metálicas para proteger tanto el lugar como a los visitantes.

Actualmente, Sümela funciona como museo estatal. La entrada cuesta 20 euros y abre todos los días de 8:00 a 18:00. Se proyecta un cortometraje sobre la renovación y se recomienda dedicar, al menos, una o dos horas para recorrer el complejo y admirar sus secretos. La llegada implica caminar por un sendero empinado y subir varias escaleras hasta la entrada.

Justo afuera, los visitantes encuentran una pequeña tienda de recuerdos, bocadillos y baños. Es fundamental usar calzado adecuado y ropa apropiada, ya que el clima puede ser lluvioso en verano y nevado en invierno.

Quienes deseen visitar Sümela pueden aprovechar la conexión aérea entre Estambul y Trabzon (menos de dos horas de vuelo), o viajar por vía terrestre, aunque son aproximadamente 13 horas desde la capital. El alojamiento más cercano al monasterio se encuentra en el pueblo de Coşandere, con una variedad de opciones que van desde habitaciones con vista al mar o ubicadas en la cima de una colina.

Israel announced Saturday that the latest remains handed over by Hamas via the Red Cross were that of a deceased hostage.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) identified the deceased hostage as Eliyahu Margalit, known by many as «Churchill,» who was murdered during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks. It also underscored that «Hamas is required to fulfill its part of the agreement and make the necessary efforts to return all the hostages to their families and to a dignified burial.»

Israel said Margalit was killed at the horse stables in Kibbutz Nir Oz and that his body was then taken into Gaza, where it was held for more than two years. The IDF initially confirmed Margalit’s death in December 2023.

Margalit’s daughter, Nili Margalit, was also taken hostage but was released during the brief November 2023 ceasefire. He leaves behind a wife, three children and grandchildren.

REMAINS OF LAST FEMALE HAMAS HOSTAGE AND IDF SOLDIER HANDED OVER TO ISRAEL

«The government of Israel shares in the deep sorrow of the Margalit family and all the families of the fallen abductees,» Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said in a statement. «The government and the entire Israeli Public Security Bureau are determined, committed and working tirelessly to return all of our fallen abductees for a proper burial in their country.»

Margalit’s loved ones said he went to feed his beloved horses early in the morning on Oct. 7 and that the horses were taken along with him, according to The Times of Israel. The outlet added that Margalit was responsible for the kibbutz’s cattle for many years.

«Our beloved Eli has returned home, 742 days after he was murdered and kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz. We thank the people of Israel and the Hostage Families Forum for their support in the long struggle for his return, and promise that we will not stop or rest until the last of the hostages is returned for burial in Israel,» the family said in a statement, according to The Times of Israel.

Protesters stand with portraits of Israeli hostages Eliyahu Margalit, Eli Sharabi, Nimron Cohen, and others during a demonstration by the families of the hostages taken captive in the Gaza Strip by Palestinian militants during the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks, outside the Israeli Prime Minister’s residence in Azza (Gaza) Street in central Jerusalem on Oct. 24, 2024. (Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images)

ISRAEL NAMES TWO OF FOUR DEAD HOSTAGES RETURNED BY HAMAS, HOW THEY DIED

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which was established in the wake of the Oct. 7 massacre, expressed condolences to Margalit’s family.

«The families of the hostages and the released embrace the family of Eliyahu ‘Churchill’ Margalit at this difficult time, following the return of their beloved Eliyahu z»l to Israel last night for a proper burial,» the forum wrote. «Alongside the grief and the understanding that their hearts will never be whole again, Eliyahu’s return brings some measure of solace to a family that has lived in unbearable uncertainty and doubt for over two years. We will not rest until all 18 hostages are brought home.»

Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers salute Eliyahu Margalit’s coffin, which has been draped in an Israeli flag. (IDF Spokesperson’s Unit)

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The forum noted that Margalit was «a cowboy at heart» and was linked to an organization known as «Riders of the South,» which has been bringing horseback riding enthusiasts together for more than 50 years.

Margalit is the 10th deceased hostage to be returned to Israel, while the remains of 18 others are still in Gaza. Two of the deceased hostages whose bodies have not been returned are Itay Chen, 19, and Omer Neutra, 21, both of whom are U.S. citizens.