A US federal appeals court has refused to lift a temporary
block on President Donald Trump's revised travel ban.
The Virginia-based court said the president's broad immigration
power was "not absolute" and the ban "intended to bar Muslims
from this country".
The decision upheld a lower Maryland court ruling that found
the ban violated constitutional rights.
The justice department said it would now seek a Supreme
Court review of the appeals verdict.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the verdict thwarted Mr
Trump's effort to protect US national security.
The US government argues federal immigration laws grant the
president broad powers to stop foreigners from entering the country.
But Chief Judge Roger L Gregory, who wrote the majority
opinion for the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, said on Thursday that Mr
Trump's powers had limits.
"It cannot go unchecked when, as here, the president
wields it through an executive edict that stands to cause irreparable harm to
individuals across this nation," said Judge Gregory.
The court added that the government's national security
argument was a "secondary justification for an executive order rooted in
religious animus and intended to bar Muslims from this country".
The decision means citizens from Iran, Sudan, Somalia,
Yemen, Syria and Libya can continue travelling to the US.
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