US Mentions 19 Countries Whose Green Cards Will Be Re-examined After Deadly Shooting
- The President Donald Trump administration moved to reexamine all green cards issued to nationals from 19 countries after a deadly shooting in Washington, DC
- Officials said the review would apply to immigrants from nations deemed “of concern,” including Afghanistan, Iran, Libya and Venezuela
- The decision came as Trump blamed his predecessor’s policies for allowing the Afghan suspect into the United States
The Donald Trump administration announced that it would reexamine all green cards issued to people from 19 countries identified as nations “of concern.”
According to CNN, the move followed the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, DC, allegedly carried out by Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national.
Source: Getty Images
Joe Edlow, director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), wrote on X Thursday: “At the direction of @POTUS, I have directed a full scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern.”
Countries of concern listed
USCIS pointed to a June presidential proclamation that named the 19 countries. They are:
• Afghanistan
• Burma
• Chad
• Republic of the Congo
• Equatorial Guinea
• Eritrea
• Haiti
• Iran
• Libya
• Somalia
• Sudan
• Yemen
• Burundi
• Cuba
• Laos
• Sierra Leone
• Togo
• Turkmenistan
• Venezuela
Officials said the agency would now consider “negative, country specific factors” when vetting immigrants, including whether a country could issue secure identity documents.
Afghan suspect linked to operation allies welcome
Authorities identified Lakanwal as the suspect in the shooting. He had previously worked with the US government, including the CIA, before arriving in 2021 under President Joe Biden’s “Operation Allies Welcome.” He applied for asylum in 2024, and the Trump administration granted it in April 2025.
A US official told CNN that Lakanwal had been “clean on all checks” before working with the government and again before entering the country.
DHS halts Afghan immigration processing
The Department of Homeland Security confirmed Thursday that immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals had been stopped indefinitely. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said:
“Effective immediately, processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals is stopped indefinitely pending further review of security and vetting protocols. The Trump Administration is also reviewing all asylum cases approved under the Biden Administration.”
Afghan community voices concern
The Alliance of Afghan Communities in the United States condemned the shooting but warned against collective punishment. In a statement, the group said:
“A single individual’s crime must not jeopardize or obstruct the legal cases of thousands of deserving Afghans who meet all U.S. legal requirements.”
More than 190,000 Afghans have resettled in the US since the military withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021, according to the State Department.
Trump blames Biden administration
In a video address from Mar-a-Lago late Wednesday, President Donald Trump blamed his predecessor for bringing the alleged shooter to the US. He said the attack “underscores the single greatest national security threat facing our nation.”
Trump added:
“We must now reexamine every single alien who’s entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden and we must take all necessary measures to ensure the removal of any alien from any country who does not belong here or add benefit to our country.”
He also claimed that “20 million unknown and unvetted foreigners” had entered the US during Biden’s presidency, describing it as “a risk to our very survival.”
Green card review part of wider immigration policy
The administration’s decision to reexamine green cards aligns with Trump’s broader anti-immigration stance. A green card grants lawful permanent residency in the US, distinct from refugee and asylum programmes, though refugees must apply for a green card after one year in the country.
Source: Getty Images
US to send deported migrants to African country
Legit.ng earlier reported that the United States has reached new bilateral deportation agreements with Honduras and Uganda, according to documents obtained by CBS News, a partner of the BBC.
The deals form part of the Trump administration’s intensified efforts to curb illegal immigration by securing arrangements with foreign governments to accept deported migrants who are not their own nationals.
CBS reported that Uganda had agreed to accept an unspecified number of African and Asian asylum seekers who had originally claimed refuge at the US-Mexico border.
Proofreading by James Ojo, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
