WASHINGTON — Trump administration officials on Sunday announced the deportations of hundreds of immigrants it alleges are members of a Venezuelan gang to El Salvador under the wartime Alien Enemies Act after a judge temporarily blocked the effort on Saturday.

“The president invoked this authority to deport nearly 300 of them who are now in El Salvador, where they will be behind bars where they belong, rather than roaming freely in American communities,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during an interview on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.”

It’s not clear how the government determined the nearly 300 men were part of the gang or if they were given U.S. court hearings or immigration hearings, as the Alien Enemies Act allows the government to deport certain nationals in times of war without trial.

A judge on Saturday ordered any deportation flights that were carrying anyone subject to the presidential proclamation to return to the United States if they were currently in flight. The ruling, however, did not apply to migrants that already landed in a foreign country prior to the court order or those subject to removal from the country for reasons separate from Trump’s proclamation.

The government said in a filing Sunday afternoon that “some gang members subject to removal under the Proclamation had already been removed from United States territory” before the issuance of the court’s order.

It is unclear, however, if any of the deportees had already landed in El Salvador ahead of the judge’s ruling or if the Trump administration defied the order. A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the timing of deportation flights.

President Donald Trump on Saturday invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a rarely used authority, in an effort to deport immigrants he alleged were members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. But ahead of Trump’s proclamation, the American Civil Liberties Union and Democracy Forward filed a lawsuit, saying that the administration was preparing to use the Alien Enemies Act to deport five Venezuelan men.

A federal judge initially issued a temporary restraining order to prevent the administration from deporting the five men under the Alien Enemies Act but later blocked its use for deportations of all non-U.S. citizens who were in custody and subject to Trump’s proclamation.

“Any plane containing these folks that is going to take off, or is in the air, needs to be returned to the United States,” Chief Judge of the D.C. District Court James Boasberg said on Saturday. “Those people need to be returned to the United States.”

Two flights holding Venezuelans were in transit during the judge’s ruling, according to a source familiar with the matter. NBC News could not confirm if the flights turned around following the order.

A blue “Global X” plane took off from Harlingen, Texas, on Saturday afternoon, landing at El Salvador International Airport about an hour after the judge’s ruling, according to an NBC News analysis of flight tracking databases. El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele posted a video to X on Sunday that appeared to show several deportees being taken off of a blue “Global X” plane and brought into the custody of heavily armed Salvadoran authorities.

NBC News cannot confirm if the flights that landed in El Salvador carrying Venezuelans were the two flights that were in the air at the time of the judge’s order.

Lee Gelernt, a lawyer arguing the case for the ACLU, said on Sunday that his team asked “the government to assure the court that nobody was removed in violation of the Order.” The government has not responded as of early afternoon, according to Gelernt.

Stephen Gillers, a law professor at New York University, said if the administration is allowed to violate a court order with “impunity,” the nation could barrel towards a constitutional crisis.

“Now that Congress has shown itself subservient to the wishes of the White House, the judiciary is the last check against the exercise of autocratic power in the president,” Gillers said. “The question before the country is whether the judges will use their contempt and other powers to resist the elimination of checks and balances in order to protect the rule of law.”

Trump administration officials touted the deportations on Sunday. Secretary of State Marco Rubio thanked Bukele, saying in a statement he “has volunteered to imprison these violent criminals.” Rubio said that “hundreds of violent criminals were sent out of our country.”

Leavitt also praised the deportations in a post to X, saying that “thanks to the great work of the Department of State, these heinous monsters were extracted and removed to El Salvador where they will no longer be able to pose any threat to the American People.”

Neither Rubio’s nor Leavitt’s statements referenced the judge’s order or detailed whether the administration was in compliance.

Rubio also referenced wanting to “get rid of Tren de Aragua members” during an interview with CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”

When asked about the arrest of activist Mahmoud Khalil and whether only people who express support for Palestinians could have visas revoked, Rubio pointed to actions taken against Tren de Aragua.

“We want to get rid of Tren de Aragua gang members. They’re terrorists too,” Rubio said. “The president designated them — asked me to designate and I did, as a terrorist organization. We want to get rid of them as well.”

Bukele said in a post to X on Sunday that 238 members of Tren de Aragua arrived in the country “today.” The U.S. also deported 23 MS-13 members to El Salvador, Bukele added. Also on Sunday, Bukele posted an image of a headline about the judge’s order, writing, “Oopsie… Too late” with a laughing emoji.