Washington moves quickly after attack on National Guard
In the wake of a shooting in Washington, D.C., that left a member of the United States National Guard dead and another critically injured, the U.S. government has announced it will suspend all immigration requests for Afghan nationals. The decision was made by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) late on Wednesday — just hours after the suspected shooter, identified as an Afghan national, was taken into custody.
Officials said the freeze applies to all visas and asylum applications for people travelling on Afghan passports, and the halt is indefinite “pending further review of security and vetting protocols.”
What triggered the move
The abrupt policy shift follows a fatal attack near the White House on 26 November 2025, when two National Guard members were shot while on patrol near the Farragut West Metro station. One soldier died, the other was wounded. The gunman has been identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal — a 29-year-old Afghan national who entered the U.S. in 2021 under the evacuation programme Operation Allies Welcome and was later granted asylum.
In a video message following the shooting, U.S. President Donald J. Trump described the attack as an “act of terror” and promised a full re-examination of immigration visas, green cards, and asylum cases for individuals from “countries of concern,” including Afghanistan.
What the freeze means — and who it affects
- Visa issuance halted: The U.S. Department of State has stopped issuing visas to all travellers holding Afghan passports.
- Asylum and immigration requests frozen: USCIS has paused processing of all new immigration requests from Afghan nationals, and pending asylum and resettlement applications are on hold.
- Broad immigration review underway: The administration is reviewing not just new cases but also previously approved asylum and green-card applications for Afghans. Green cards granted under past policies are being re-examined, reflecting a sweeping immigration overhaul in response to the attack.
For tens of thousands of Afghans who were evacuated under Operation Allies Welcome after the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the freeze has abruptly closed a critical path to legal residency. Many now say the move leaves them in deep uncertainty — with some fearing forced deportation or prolonged limbo. Reuters+1
The administration’s rationale — and backlash
The decision reflects mounting pressure from the current U.S. administration to tighten immigration controls under the banner of national security. Officials argue that the shooting exposed vulnerabilities in asylum- and parole-based immigration pathways, and pledged to impose stricter vetting protocols for immigrants from high-risk countries.
Critics, however, warn the freeze will punish thousands of innocent people — many of whom aided U.S. forces in Afghanistan — for the actions of one individual. Advocacy groups say the move undermines U.S. commitments to refugees and could jeopardize humanitarian protections.
What’s next: uncertainty, legal limbo, and political fallout
At this moment:
- Afghan applicants awaiting visas or asylum decisions are left in limbo, with no clear timeline for when — or if — processing will resume.
- Many fear the freeze could lead to long-term suspension of resettlement pathways, even for those previously vetted under prior administrations.
- The decision is likely to fuel broader political debates about immigration, national security, and the treatment of refugees — in Congress, courts, and public discourse.
For now, the message from Washington is clear: in the aftermath of a shooting that shocked the capital, immigration — especially for Afghans — has become the front line of a sweeping policy reset.
