District Court Judge Sparkle Sooknanan's order on Sunday was in response to reports children had been put onto planes and were about to be sent to Guatemala, where lawyers argued they would be at risk of abuse and persecution.

The children arrived in the US alone and are in government custody while their immigration claims are assessed.

Guatemala's President Bernardo Arévalo and lawyers for the US justice department said the children were not being deported, but rather repatriated so they could be reunited with family.

President Arévalo criticised the ruling and promised to continue fighting to bring the children home under a pilot programme he had proposed to President Trump.

Guatemalan news site Prensa Libra said dozens of parents had already gathered at a reception centre for returned migrants in the capital, Guatemala City, to await the return of their children when news of the ruling broke.