Washington: Europe and the Arabs – Agencies

Joseph Idlow, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), confirmed that the suspension of all asylum decisions will continue until every migrant has been thoroughly vetted and their case reviewed to the fullest extent possible, emphasizing that "protecting the United States and its people remains our top priority."

The Trump administration issued an internal directive to USCIS employees to suspend all asylum decisions following the shooting of two National Guard soldiers in Washington, D.C., according to CBS News, citing sources familiar with the decision.

Asylum officers at the agency, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, were instructed to refrain from approving, denying, or closing asylum applications, according to a report on the matter by Euronews, the European news network based in Brussels.

Joseph Idlow, Director of USCIS, confirmed that the suspension of all asylum decisions will continue until every migrant has been thoroughly vetted and their case reviewed to the fullest extent possible, emphasizing that protecting the United States and its people remains our top priority. The US agency explained that the new screening will focus on country-specific factors, such as "the ability to issue secure identification documents."

This decision came after the identification of the attack suspect, Rahmanullah Lakhanwal, an Afghan national who came to the United States in 2021 under the "Operation Allies Welcome" program launched by the Biden administration to support Afghan refugees after the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan. Lakhanwal applied for asylum in 2024, and the Trump administration granted him asylum in April 2025, according to NBC News.

In a related development, the Department of Homeland Security announced a temporary suspension of processing all immigration applications from Afghan nationals until security and screening protocols are reviewed. All asylum cases approved during the Biden administration are also being reviewed. Trump described the shooting as "the greatest national security threat facing the United States," citing the entry of "20 million unknown and unvetted aliens" during the Biden administration. He reiterated his intention to permanently halt immigration from "Third World" countries, end all federal aid and benefits for non-Americans, and take steps to revoke the citizenship of immigrants who undermine homeland security and deport aliens who pose a public burden or security risk. The list of 19 countries includes Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Iran, Somalia, Venezuela, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Libya, Burma, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Turkmenistan. The Republican president also attacked Biden's resettlement policy, asserting that the arrested suspect was "an alien who entered the country from Afghanistan and was brought to the United States by the Biden administration in September 2021." Trump vowed to re-vet all Afghans who entered the country during his Democratic predecessor's term, describing immigration as... It was described as "the greatest threat to national security."

As part of the security response, US Secretary of Defense Pete Higseth announced the deployment of 500 additional troops to Washington, D.C., bringing the total number of personnel stationed there to over 2,500. This deployment aims to raise the level of preparedness and protect sensitive sites amid concerns about a possible recurrence of the incident.

For its part, the Alliance of Afghan Communities in the United States expressed concern about the impact of one individual's actions on thousands of eligible Afghan refugees, emphasizing that Rahmanullah Lakhanwal's crime should not impede the processing of the legal status of other Afghans.

It is worth noting that more than 190,000 Afghans have been resettled in the United States since the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan in August 2011, according to data from the US State Department.