US announces Green Card review for Afghanistan and 18 other nationals following D.C. attack, aiming to reassess permanent residency status

The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it will review the immigration status of all permanent residents, or Green Card holders, from Afghanistan and 18 additional countries following Wednesday’s attack on National Guard troops in Washington, D.C.

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Officials identified the suspect in the shooting as a 29-year-old Afghan national who previously worked alongside American forces in Afghanistan.

The individual had been granted asylum earlier this year, not permanent residency, according to AfghanEvac, an organisation assisting Afghans resettled in the United States after the Taliban takeover in 2021.

Joseph Edlow, Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), stated on X: “I have directed a full-scale, rigorous reexamination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern.”

The review follows a June executive order by President Trump that classified 19 countries as “of Identified Concern,” banning entry for nearly all nationals from 12 of these countries, including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen.

A partial travel ban applies to seven additional nations—Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela—although some temporary work visas remain permitted.

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Officials said the reexamination of Green Card holders aims to ensure compliance with national security policies and will include a comprehensive review of residency eligibility for the affected countries.