US President Donald Trump waves upon his arrival at the White House from Philadelphia, in Washington DC, the United States, on Jan 26, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

NEW YORK - A US federal judge issued an emergency stay on Saturday that bars the US government from deporting some of those subject to President Donald Trump's newly-imposed "Muslim ban," local media reported.

The ruling presented the first legal challenge against the executive order Trump signed Friday on slapping a 90-day ban on travel to the United States by citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries and a four-month suspension of the US refugee program.

US District Judge Ann Donnelly ruled that citizens of those seven countries -- Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen -- who have already arrived in the United States, who are in transit and who hold valid visas cannot be removed from the United States, according to US broadcaster CNN.

The executive order, widely described as a "Muslim ban," has triggered confusion and chaos across the country and drawn concern and criticism from across the world. Protests have erupted at airports in many cities.