The Trump administration has announced it will re-examine green cards issued to individuals who immigrated to the US from 19 countries.
The head of the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, Joseph Edlow, stated that the president has directed him to conduct a full scale, rigorous re-examination of every green card for every alien from every country of concern.
When asked which countries are on the list, the agency pointed to a June proclamation by the White House that included Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Iran, Somalia, and Venezuela.
This announcement follows an incident where an Afghan national allegedly shot two National Guard troops in Washington DC, gravely injuring them both.
The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, had been granted special immigration protections after coming to the US in 2021 due to the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan.
President Donald Trump stated that the shooting underlined a major national security threat.
Edlow's announcement regarding the extensive green card review did not explicitly reference the shooting incident, but noted that the protection of this country and of the American people remains paramount, and the American people will not bear the cost of the prior administration's reckless resettlement policies.
No further details on the nature of the re-examination were provided. The same proclamation highlighted an aim to restrict foreign nationals from entering the US to protect from potential threats.
The review is warranted, according to the administration, due to security concerns and the rates of overstayed visas among tourists, students, and business travelers from certain nations, including those under Taliban control, indicating a lack of appropriate screening measures.
Countries such as Burma, Chad, Republic of Congo, and Libya are also included in the review. The recent violence has intensified calls for stringent immigration reforms, with Trump remarking on the administration's need to assess entries from countries with lax vetting protocols.
Additionally, the US government has suspended processing all immigration requests from Afghans pending a review of security protocols.
