Trump delays effective date of travel ban amid court battle

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Trump administration is pushing back on claims that President Donald Trump's travel ban is soon set to expire.

The White House released a memorandum Wednesday declaring that the effective date of the president's executive order banning travelers from six Muslim-majority countries "is delayed or tolled" until all relevant court injunctions "are lifted or stayed."

Some critics of the travel ban have said that the policy's 90-day halt to visitors from Iran, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Libya is due to expire in mid-June, even though the ban itself has never taken effect.

The memorandum instructs the secretary of state, the attorney general, the secretary of homeland security, and the director of national intelligence to implement the ban 72 hours after all applicable court injunctions are lifted or stayed.