WASHINGTON — A federal judge in the United States has said he has found probable cause to hold President Donald Trump’s administration in criminal contempt of court for violating his orders to turn around planes carrying deportees to El Salvador.

US District Judge James E. Boasberg warned he could refer the matter for prosecution if the administration does not "purge" its contempt.

Boasberg said the administration could do so by returning to US custody those who were sent to the El Salvador prison in violation of his order so that they "might avail themselves of their right to challenge their removability."

If the Justice Department declines to prosecute the matter, Boasberg said he will appoint another attorney to prosecute the contempt.

"The Constitution does not tolerate wilful disobedience of judicial orders — especially by officials of a coordinate branch who have sworn an oath to uphold it," Boasberg wrote.

The Trump administration said it would appeal.

In a social media post on X, White House communications director Steven Cheung wrote, “The President is 100% committed to ensuring that terrorists and criminal illegal migrants are no longer a threat to Americans and their communities across the country,”.

The case has become one of the most heated among several legal battles facing the Republican administration, bringing it into direct conflict with the federal courts. — Euronews