In a unanimous vote on Thursday evening, a three-judge federal appeals panel ruled to uphold a block on Donald Trump's travel ban and refused to reinstate measures that would bar travel to the U.S. for people from seven predominantly Muslim nations as well as limit thoroughly vetted refugees from entering the country.

Since Trump signed the “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry Into the United States" executive order nearly two weeks ago, the operations of U.S. Customs and Border Protection have faced continuing turmoil as government employees struggled to understand and enforce the President's decree. Anywhere between 60,000 and 100,000 visas were revoked in response to the ban, and neither Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly nor Secretary of Defense James Mattis were briefed on the document before it was enacted (similarly, House Speaker Paul Ryan only learned of what it actually entailed after the President had signed it).

The order sparked protests nationwide and vocal criticism from numerous Democrats in Congress—and even some Republicans. Last Friday James L. Robart, a Seattle-based federal judge, temporarily halted provisions of the executive order that affected the refugee program, as well as travel by individuals from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. Trump tweeted that the decision to halt these measures endangered national security and implored the appellate judges to reinstate them immediately. After several days of hearing arguments, however, the panel of three judges on the Ninth Circuit ruled to uphold Robart's ruling. Trump quickly took to Twitter to denounce their decision, writing, "SEE YOU IN COURT, THE SECURITY OF OUR NATION IS AT STAKE!"

The Justice Department, in contrast, offered a more measured response:

Following Thursday's ruling, the case will likely—and quickly—be appealed to the Supreme Court. In the case of a 4-4 split, the decision will go back to the lower court, meaning the portions of Trump's executive order that are currently blocked have potential to be permanently obstructed.