An appeals court panel has maintained the freeze on President Trump’s controversial immigration order, thus allowing previously barred refugees and citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries to continue to enter the US, a report said.

In a unanimous decision, the three judges with the San Francisco-based US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit flatly rejected the government’s argument that the suspension of the order should be lifted immediately for national security reasons, reported Washington Post.

The court found that “the Government does not merely argue that courts owe substantial deference to the immigration and national security policy determinations of the political branches — an uncontroversial principle that is well-grounded in our jurisprudence.”

Its ruling noted “the government has pointed to no evidence that any alien from any of the countries named in the order has perpetrated a terrorist attack in the United States. Rather than present evidence to explain the need for the executive order, the government has taken the position that we must not review its decision at all.”

The judges explained: “Instead, the Government has taken the position that the President’s decisions about immigration policy, particularly when motivated by national security concerns, are unreviewable, even if those actions potentially contravene constitutional rights and protections ... There is no precedent to support this claimed unreviewability, which runs contrary to the fundamental structure of our constitutional democracy.”

The judges did not specify whether the ban was meant to disfavour Muslims, but their ruling is undeniably a blow to the government and means the ban will remain off for now, the report said.

Trump reacted on Twitter, posting just minutes after the ruling, “SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!”

 The Justice Department, which was defending the administration’s position, said in a statement it was “reviewing the decision and considering its options.”

The Justice Department could now ask the Supreme Court to intervene.