WASHINGTON — Malachy McAllister, who has fought U.S. government efforts to deport him for two decades, just won another last-minute reprieve.

Acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan agreed to delay McAllister’s deportation, originally scheduled for April 30, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials told Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr.

McAllister, of Rutherford, is a former member of the paramilitary Irish National Liberation Army who fled Northern Ireland after serving time in prison for the attempted murder of British police officers during the period of civil strife known as the "Troubles.”

He came to New Jersey in 1996 as an asylum-seeker after he said British loyalists sprayed his family home with machine-gun fire. But U.S. immigration officials designated him a terrorist and have been trying to deport him ever since.

His allies scrambled to avert the latest deportation effort, which was scheduled for Tuesday.

“The decision by the Homeland Security Department to allow Mr. McAllister to remain in America is terrific news," said Pascrell, D-9th Dist., who has championed McAllister’s request to stay in the country. “Mr. McAllister and his family have set roots in our community. America is where he belongs.”

Both Pascrell and U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., have introduced legislation to allow McAllister to remain. Pascrell and 27 other House members also wrote to the leaders of the House Judiciary Committee, seeking their support for the bill.

“The offenses for which Mr. McAllister was convicted occurred 36 years ago," they wrote. "He has never been convicted of any offenses within the United States.”

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.

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