The Trump administration has suspended all asylum decisions following the shooting of two National Guard soldiers in Washington DC, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) director Joseph Edlow.
In a post on X published on Friday, Edlow said the pause would remain in effect “until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible”.
The announcement came just hours after President Donald Trump vowed to “permanently pause migration” from all “third world countries” in response to the incident.
On Thursday, Trump confirmed that one of the soldiers had died from her injuries. Authorities have attributed the attack to an Afghan national.
CBS News reported that USCIS officers were instructed not to approve, deny, or close any asylum applications — regardless of nationality — until further notice. Officers may continue processing and reviewing files only up to the final decision stage.
“Once you’ve reached decision entry, stop and hold,” the directive stated.
Limited details have emerged about the nature of the order or the scope of Trump’s wider policy plans. He did not specify which countries might be affected, and experts predict potential legal challenges.
The move follows a series of strict actions on migration during Trump’s second term in office. The administration has pursued mass deportations of migrants who entered the US illegally, major cuts to refugee admissions, and the removal of automatic citizenship rights for those born on US soil.
In a statement following Wednesday’s attack, Trump pledged to expel from the US any foreigner “from any country who does not belong here”. The same day, the government suspended all immigration requests from Afghans, pending a review of “security and vetting protocols”.
The following day, USCIS announced that it would re-examine green cards issued to individuals from 19 countries.
When asked for further information, the agency referred to a June White House proclamation listing Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Iran, Somalia and Venezuela. No details were provided on how the review would proceed.
“End Federal Benefits to Noncitizens”
In a strongly worded post on Thursday night, Trump went further, vowing to “end all federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens”. On Truth Social, he wrote that this would “allow the US system to fully recover” from policies that had harmed the “gains and living conditions” of many Americans.
He also blamed refugees for what he called “social dysfunction in America” and pledged to expel “anyone who is not a net asset” to the country.
He claimed that “hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia were completely taking over the once great State of Minnesota” and criticised the state’s Democratic lawmakers.
“I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover,” Trump wrote.
The term “third world” was historically used to refer to developing nations, though it is seldom used in modern diplomatic language.
International Reaction
Earlier this year, Trump imposed a travel ban on nationals of Afghanistan and 11 more countries — mostly in Africa and Asia. A similar ban targeting majority-Muslim states was enacted during his first term.
The UN urged the US to respect its commitments to international asylum laws.
“We expect all countries, including the United States, to honour their commitments under the 1953 Refugee Convention,” a deputy spokesperson for the UN secretary general told Reuters.
The American Immigration Lawyers Association accused Trump of “scapegoating” migrants. Speaking ahead of Trump’s most recent remarks, its president Jeremy McKinney told the BBC World Service’s Newsday programme that the attacker’s motives were still unknown.
“These types of issues – they don’t know skin colour, they don’t know nationality,” he said. “When a person becomes radicalised or is suffering some type of mental illness, that person can come from any background.”
Afghan Suspect Identified
Officials confirmed that the suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, arrived in the US in 2021 under a special immigration programme for Afghans who had assisted American forces after the military withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The CIA’s director said Mr Lakanwal had previously worked with the agency. According to a senior US official who spoke to CNN, he would have been vetted before beginning that work and again before travelling to the US.
A childhood friend told the New York Times that Lakanwal experienced mental health problems after his time with the unit.
He applied for asylum in 2024 and reportedly received approval earlier this year after Trump returned to power. His green card request, however, remains pending.
Authorities say he has not cooperated since his arrest following the attack. Trump described the incident as an “act of terror”.
The president confirmed the death of one of the victims: 20-year-old National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom from West Virginia.
She had volunteered to work in Washington DC over the Thanksgiving holiday as part of Trump’s deployment aimed at reducing crime. The second Guard member, 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe, was said by Trump to be “fighting for his life”.
