On November 28, New York, LatestNewsX reported that following the pause on Afghan visa applications, President Donald Trump ordered a tighter review of Green Card holders from Afghanistan and 18 other nations.
US Customs and Immigration Service Director Joseph Edlow announced that, per Trump’s direction, he has “directed a full-scale, rigorous re-examination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern.”
India and other South‑Asian countries are not on the watch list, with Afghanistan the only exception from that region.
The new measures came after a shooting spree by Rahmanullah Lakanwal outside the White House on Wednesday. The attack killed National Guard soldier Sarah Beckstrom and left another officer in critical condition. Lakanwal, who was wounded before his arrest, remains hospitalized.
During a brief statement, Trump said, “We must now re‑examine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan.”
Under the expanded scrutiny announced by Edlow, hundreds of thousands of Green Card holders from the 19 countries will undergo “rigorous re‑examination.” Trump had earlier placed the same countries on a watch list in June and curtailed visa issuance, citing concerns over the US’s ability to vet applicants from those regions.
The list also includes Burma, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
Lakanwal had previously served with the CIA in Afghanistan and entered the US under programs that protected Afghan allies after the Taliban takeover.
Edlow criticized the former administration for lax screening, stating, “Yesterday’s horrific events make it abundantly clear the Biden administration spent the last four years dismantling basic vetting and screening standards, prioritising the rapid resettlement of aliens from high‑risk countries over the safety of American citizens.”
According to the new policy guidance, immigration officers will “consider country‑specific factors as significant negative factors when reviewing immigration requests.”
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