LOS ANGELES: A federal appeals court on Thursday refused to restore President Donald Trump’s controversial executive order closing US borders to refugees and nationals from seven countries, keeping a temporary suspension in place.
“We hold that the government has not shown a likelihood of success on the merits of its appeal, nor has it shown that failure to enter a stay would cause irreparable injury,” the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled.
The court denied the government’s request to reinstate the measure on an emergency basis, meaning a lower court suspension of the travel ban stands for now.
A panel of three judges held a contentious hearing in the matter on Tuesday, with the lawyer representing the Trump administration insisting the controversial ban was justified for national security reasons.
