The Trump administration has halted all asylum rulings in the United States following the shooting of two National Guard soldiers near the White House, triggering a nationwide freeze across the immigration system. USCIS Director Joseph Edlow announced that officers have been instructed to stop issuing asylum decisions immediately, stating that no application will resume until every applicant can be vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible. The move has been presented as necessary to protect Americans after the attack.
The suspension came after 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who arrived in the United States in 2021 and was granted asylum earlier this year, allegedly shot the two soldiers in Washington, D.C. Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, later died from her injuries, while Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe remains in critical condition. The incident triggered an urgent overhaul of immigration enforcement and vetting protocols.
Following the attack, the administration ordered a review of all asylum approvals granted under the Biden administration and directed officials to reexamine green card applications from nationals of 19 previously flagged countries. Secretary of State Marco Rubio also announced that visa issuance for all individuals traveling on Afghan passports has been paused indefinitely. More than 100,000 Afghan immigration and resettlement cases — many pending since the 2021 U.S. withdrawal — are now frozen under the new directive.
President Trump amplified the policy message in a Truth Social post, saying the United States would permanently pause migration from all so-called Third World countries. He also said he intends to revoke citizenship from individuals he considers threats to domestic tranquility and pursue what he described as “reverse migration,” arguing that millions of foreign-born residents legally living in the United States are responsible for social disorder and strain on public services. He closed his statement with a Thanksgiving message that excluded those he claimed “hate, steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for.”
With asylum rulings halted, Afghan visas suspended, and thousands of green card applications frozen, the administration’s reaction to the D.C. shooting has rapidly reshaped U.S. immigration policy. The measures mark the most sweeping clampdown since Trump returned to office and have intensified fear and uncertainty among both undocumented migrants and legal residents awaiting permanent status.
