A federal judge in Hawaii blocked President Donald Trump's latest bid to impose restrictions on citizens from eight countries entering the United States, which had been set to take effect this week.
The open-ended ban, announced last month, targeted people from Iran, Libya, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Chad and North Korea, as well as certain government officials from Venezuela. It was the latest version of a policy that had previously targeted six Muslim-majority countries but had been restricted by the Supreme Court.
U.S. District Judge Derrick Watson on Tuesday granted Hawaii's request to temporarily block the federal government from enforcing the policy. It was supposed to take effect at midnight Wednesday.
Hawaii argues the updated ban is a continuation of President Donald Trump's "promise to exclude Muslims from the United States."
The state cited remarks the president made the day the executive order was signed in which he called for a tough "travel ban" as well as tweets posted to the president's Twitter account.
Trump tweet
The court also wrote that the ban likely runs afoul of the Immigration and Nationality Act's rule against discriminating against a particular nationality in issuing visas.
The latest nationwide ban is the president's third attempt to limit entry into the country. In September, the Supreme Court cancelled oral arguments in a case involving the second ban.
Other courts are weighing challenges to the policy. In Maryland, the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups are seeking to block the visa and entry restrictions in the president's latest proclamation.
This story is developing. Please check back for further updates.
Reuters and the Associated Press contributed to this story.