The Donald Trump administration on Saturday (local time) invoked an 18th-century law, the Alien Enemies Act of 1978, to speed up the deportations of migrants affiliated with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, CNN reported.

This rarely used law, which has been invoked only three times before, grants the president broad authority to target and remove undocumented immigrants. The Alien Enemies Act of 1798 can be invoked if the US is at war with another country or a foreign nation has invaded the US or threatened to do so.