Washington — A federal appeals court on Thursday halted a lower court ruling that required Florida and the Trump administration to dismantle parts of "Alligator Alcatraz," a controversial immigration detention site in the Everglades.

The 2-1 ruling by a panel of judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit will effectively allow Alligator Alcatraz to stay open while a lawsuit challenging the detention center on environmental grounds works its way through the court system.

The Department of Homeland Security began moving detainees out of the site late last month. But the state has said Alligator Alcatraz will ramp back up if the lower court ruling is overturned.

Last month, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams ordered the state of Florida and federal government

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