Trump administration pauses immigration applications from Afghans after DC shooting
Iran Press TV
Thursday, 27 November 2025 10:44 AM
The Trump administration has paused immigration applications for Afghans following a shooting in Washington, D.C. that wounded two National Guard members.
"Effective immediately, processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals is stopped indefinitely pending further review of security and vetting protocols," the US Citizenship and Immigration Services announced on Wednesday in a statement posted on X.
This comes hours after two West Virginia National Guard troops were shot near the White House in Washington. The suspect is reportedly an Afghan refugee.
"The suspect in the shooting of the two National Guard members is 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who entered the US in 2021. The suspect used a handgun to carry out the attack," two law enforcement officials told US media.
The latest suspension comes amid a larger anti-immigration policy under the Trump administration, which has capped refugee admissions at a record-low 7,500 for the 2026 fiscal year.
President Trump has also ordered the review of all refugees admitted to the United States during the Biden administration, citing security concerns.
The move, which critics have described as unnecessary and cruel, could affect more than 200,000 Afghans already in the country, including green card holders.
Since Trump's return to office, Afghan refugees who supported US forces during the 20‑year war (2001-2021) have been largely barred from entering the United States.
The US evacuated tens of thousands of people from Afghanistan in 2021 following an irresponsible withdrawal.
More than 85,000 Afghans were ultimately resettled in the United States under Operation Allies Welcome, many of them first housed on military bases while undergoing processing.
A portion qualified for Special Immigrant Visas, offered to those employed by the US government, such as interpreters facing possible retaliation from the Taliban.
Other evacuees sought asylum or applied for family-based visas, while many received temporary protections, including humanitarian parole or temporary protected status, which do not provide a direct pathway to permanent residency.
According to American media outlets, Lakanwal was paroled into the US on humanitarian grounds in 2021.
The nonprofit AfghanEvac condemned Wednesday's attack but urged the public "not to demonize the Afghan community for the deranged choice this person made."
AfghanEvac President Shawn VanDiver said immigrants from Afghanistan "undergo some of the most extensive security vetting of any population entering the country."
He said those "who would twist this moment to attack Afghan families aren't seeking safety or justice — they're exploiting division and endangering all of us."
The Trump administration has also terminated a program that shielded thousands of Afghans from deportation. The temporary protected status initiative, which provided work permits to migrants when US officials deemed their home countries unsafe.
Critics say Afghans who helped the US forces are at risk of persecution, torture, or death if they return to Afghanistan, where the Taliban regained power after the US withdrawal.
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