The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a sweeping policy shift on Wednesday after identifying Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal as the suspect in the Washington, DC, shooting that left two National Guard troops wounded just blocks from the White House. The 29-year-old allegedly opened fire on the service members before being shot and taken into custody.
Soon after authorities named Lakanwal as the suspect, President Donald Trump issued a forceful statement, describing Afghanistan as a “hell hole on earth.” “I can report tonight that based on the best available information, the Department of Homeland Security is confident that the suspect in custody is a foreigner who entered our country from Afghanistan,” he said.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X that the suspect was “mass paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome on September 8, 2021, under the Biden Administration.”
In response, USCIS announced an immediate suspension of immigration processing for Afghan nationals. “Effective immediately, processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals is stopped indefinitely pending further review of security and vetting protocols. The protections and safety of our homeland and of the American people remains our singular focus and mission,” the agency said on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.
Afghanistan has not yet publicly responded to the move by the US immigration authorities.
Trump, spending the Thanksgiving weekend in Florida, condemned the shooting in stark terms, calling the attack “monstrous.”
“Earlier today on the eve of the thanksgiving holiday, two members of the National Guard serving in Washington DC were shot at point blank range in a monstrous, ambush styled attack just steps away from the White House. This heinous assault was an act of evil and an act of hatred and an act of terror. It was a crime against our entire nation, it was a crime against humanity. The hearts of all Americans tonight are with those two members of the West Virginian National Guards and their families,” he said.
