Credit: Star Tribune

First ordered to leave the country 16 years ago, Abdulkadir Sharif Abdi was supposed to be deported from Minnesota to his native Somalia late last month. But the flight to Africa took off without him after an immigration judge agreed to take a fresh look at his case.

Abdi, a 39-year-old former Twin Cities gang member turned well-known sobriety mentor, remains in immigration detention. His case highlights an escalating tug-of-war over deportations to Somalia. As Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has stepped up deportations to the slowly rebuilding nation, local attorneys and immigrant advocates have redoubled efforts to push back.