US Initiates Comprehensive Review of Green Cards and Asylum Cases Following National Guard Shooting

In response to the recent shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., the Trump administration has announced a comprehensive review of immigration statuses. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Joseph Edlow stated that, at President Donald Trump's direction, a full-scale, rigorous reexamination of every green card issued to individuals from 19 'countries of concern' will be conducted.

The 19 countries identified include Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has also announced an indefinite suspension of all immigration requests related to Afghan nationals, pending a review of security and vetting protocols. DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin stated that the administration is reviewing all asylum cases approved under the Biden administration, citing concerns over the vetting process.

The suspect in the recent attack, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, entered the U.S. in 2021 under the Operation Allies Welcome program. He applied for asylum in December 2024, and his application was approved in April 2025 under the Trump administration.

President Trump has emphasized the need to reexamine individuals who entered the U.S. from Afghanistan under the previous administration, stating that necessary measures will be taken to ensure the removal of any alien who does not belong or add benefit to the country.