US to re-evaluate green card holders from 19 countries

The United States has introduced a new layer of caution in its immigration policy. Following the recent shooting of two National Guard members in Washington DC, the government has announced that it will re-examine the records of green card holders from 19 countries. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has already begun the review under presidential directives.

According to a CNN report published on Friday, November 28, USCIS Director Joe Edlow said on X that the identity, documents and qualifications of foreign nationals from each “concerning” country are being reassessed.

The list includes 19 countries named in the president’s June announcement—Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. The White House cited security risks, visa overstays and terrorism-related concerns as the reasons behind the selection.

In the Washington DC shooting incident, the arrested individual, Rahmanullah Lakhanwal, was identified as an Afghan national. He arrived in the United States in 2021 under the Operation Allies Welcome programme. USCIS reported that he had previously worked with the US government and the CIA. Lakhanwal applied for asylum in 2024, which was approved in April 2025.

Following the incident, the Department of Homeland Security announced that all immigration applications from Afghan nationals have been temporarily halted. Authorities are also re-examining all asylum cases approved during the Biden administration.

The State Department stated that more than 190,000 Afghans have been resettled in the United States since the US troop withdrawal in 2021.

In a video message, former President Donald Trump said the US is currently facing a major security threat. He claimed that the Biden administration had allowed 20 million “insufficiently vetted” foreigners to enter the country. He added that every Afghan who entered the US should be re-screened, and those deemed dangerous should be removed.

A US green card grants a foreign national lawful permanent residency. Asylum seekers and refugees are also eligible to apply for a green card after residing in the country for one year.