The US Supreme Court has rejected a Trump administration request to withhold almost $2 billion in payments to foreign aid organisations, which is the first significant challenge to the new government.

Since taking office in January, President Trump has suspended billions of dollars in projects supported by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), claiming that the organisation is stealing taxpayers’ money. USAID is the primary organisation that distributes US humanitarian aid worldwide and the cutbacks have already disrupted global aid efforts, freezing hundreds of emergency programmes.

Moreover, Elon Musk announced that HIV/AIDS relief administered through the agency has been halted globally under the cost-cutting measures of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk denounced USAID as a “criminal organization” and called for its dissolution, despite providing no supporting evidence for his claims.

With millions of people losing access to essential medicines, the move has sparked international outrage, with experts warning it could lead to a surge in infections and outbreaks in vulnerable regions.

Last week, US District Judge Amir Ali issued a temporary restraining order prohibiting the Trump administration from “suspending, pausing, or otherwise preventing” foreign aid. The order also gave the administration roughly 36 hours to unfreeze $2 billion in payments to aid organisations for work they had already performed as USAID contractors.

After being appealed by the Trump administration, the order was upheld by the US Supreme Court with a 5-4 vote. Conservative justices John Roberts and Amy Coney Barrett, a Trump appointee, joined the liberal judges in voting to uphold the previous ruling.

The Supreme Court noted that the deadline imposed by the lower court had already passed and urged the judge to show “due regard for the feasibility” of any future deadline. The justices further stated that the judge “should clarify what obligations the Government must fulfill.”

The ruling represents a significant but potentially short-lived victory for foreign aid organisations, as the future of USAID is to be decided in a broader legal fight that continues to play out in lower courts.

In Ireland, several humanitarian organisations rely heavily on US funding and their aid programmes were drastically impacted by the Trump administration’s cutbacks. Some organisations had to suspend their operations due to the funding freeze, with activists denouncing the move as a “catastrophe”.