Judges block Trump's order on immigration as thousands protest

Washington

TWO judges temporarily blocked President Donald Trump's administration from enforcing parts of his order to halt immigration from seven Middle Eastern countries, after a day in which students, refugees and dual citizens were stuck overseas or detained.

A nationwide ruling in Brooklyn, New York, barring refugees and visa holders already legally in the US from being turned back came hours after the American Civil Liberties Union and other groups sued to halt the Jan 27 order. A separate order in Alexandria, Virginia, forbid the government from removing about 60 legal permanent residents of the US who were being detained at Dulles International Airport.

Neither ruling strikes down the executive order, which will now be subject to court hearings. White House officials didn't immediately respond to a request for comment late on Saturday. The Department of Homeland Security, which runs the Customs and Border Protection agency, said in a statement on Sunday that it would comply with judicial orders and that the government retained the right to revoke visas for reas…