A court order blocking US President Donald Trump's freeze on trillions of dollars in government financial assistance will remain in place for now, a federal appeals court said.

President Donald Trump's administration suffered another legal blow in its efforts to freeze federal funding for programs that do not align with the Republican's agenda on Thursday when a second judge blocked it from implementing a sweeping pause on spending on grants,

The White House made a similar threat to Columbia University, which recently caved and implemented policies that restrict academic freedom for more funding.

Princeton University said on Tuesday the U.S. government froze several dozen research grants to the school, which became the latest academic institution targeted by the Trump administration in a crackdown on what it calls antisemitism on campuses.

The university received notifications this week that grants were being suspended by agencies including the Department of Energy, NASA and the Defense Department, according to a campus message from Princeton President Christopher Eisgruber.

The investigation is the latest move by the Trump administration to pressure American universities to change their policies on a number of issues at the heart of culture wars that have beset the U.S.

A federal antisemitism task force is reviewing more than $255 million in contracts between Harvard and the government after cutting $400 million from Columbia University.

A judge cleared David Piegaro of wrongdoing after he was charged with assaulting a police officer while recording pro-Palestinian campus demonstrations last year.

Princeton University said on Tuesday the U.S. government froze several dozen research grants to the school, which became the latest academic institution targeted by the Trump administration. In a statement,