US President Donald Trump has ordered a fresh round of stringent checks on Green Card holders from Afghanistan and 18 other countries in the aftermath of Wednesday’s shooting incident near the White House. The move comes a day after he halted immigration applications from Afghanistan altogether.
US Customs and Immigration Service (USCIS) director Joseph Edlow said he had “directed a full-scale, rigorous re-examination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern”, following Trump’s instructions. India does not feature on this list, and among South Asian nations, only Afghanistan is included.
The policy tightening follows the shooting by Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national who opened fire close to the White House, injuring two National Guard soldiers. One of them, Sarah Beckstrom, died on Thursday. The second soldier remains in critical condition. Lakanwal, who was wounded before being detained, is also hospitalised.
After the incident, Trump said, “We must now re-examine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan.”
His remarks have now been translated into a broader directive covering several hundred thousand Green Card holders from 19 countries.
These nations, placed on a watch list in June, include Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Togo, Turkmenistan, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Myanmar, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Chad, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Sierra Leone, and Venezuela.
How the new scrutiny changes immigration evaluations
Officials say Trump had already restricted visa processing for these countries earlier, citing difficulties in the reliable vetting of applicants. Lakanwal had arrived in the United States under a special programme for Afghans who assisted American agencies during the Taliban takeover, including work with the CIA.
Criticising the previous administration, Edlow said, “Yesterday’s horrific events make it abundantly clear the Biden administration spent the last four years dismantling basic vetting and screening standards, prioritising the rapid resettlement of aliens from high-risk countries over the safety of American citizens.”
As per the new guidance, immigration officers have been asked to treat “country-specific factors as significant negative factors” during evaluations.
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