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WASHINGTON: The US government abruptly halted the processing of all immigration requests from Afghan nationals, an immediate and indefinite freeze that follows the shooting of two National Guard soldiers near the White House.
The suspect was identified as an Afghan national, who had worked with American forces in his home country.
US Citizenship and Immigration Services announced the move late on Wednesday, stating it was “pending further review of security and vetting protocols”.
The decision came soon after President Donald Trump called for his administration to re-examine all individuals who had entered the United States from Afghanistan during the previous administration.
“The protection and safety of our homeland and of the American people remains our singular focus and mission,” the agency said in a post on X.
The suspect, identified by the Department of Homeland Security as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, had a history of collaboration with US entities in Afghanistan.
Citing CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Fox News reported that Lakanwal worked with various US government entities, including the intelligence service. An NBC report, quoting a relative, said Lakanwal served in the Afghan army for 10 years alongside US Special Forces.
This background adds a complex layer to the investigation, which the FBI on Thursday confirmed is a “full-scale terror probe”.
“It is an ongoing investigation of terrorism,” FBI Director Kash Patel said at a news conference. He said investigators were examining any potential associates the suspect had in the United States or Afghanistan. “That is what a broad-based international terrorism investigation looks like”.
As part of the probe, the FBI searched multiple properties in Washington state, where Lakanwal resided, and in San Diego. Investigators seized numerous cellphones, laptops, and iPads from the suspect’s home, Patel said.
The shooting quickly ignited a political firestorm over immigration and vetting procedures. US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the suspect “was one of the many unvetted, mass paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome”, a Biden-era program designed to resettle Afghans who assisted the US during the war.
According to DHS, Lakanwal entered the country in 2021 under that program. However, a Trump administration official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said Lakanwal applied for asylum in December 2024 and was approved on April 23 of this year, three months after Trump took office.
The official noted that Lakanwal had no known criminal history.
In a prerecorded video statement from his Florida resort, Trump called the shooting “an act of evil, an act of hatred and an act of terror”.
Lakanwal faces charges of assault with intent to kill. “If the guardsmen die he will face first-degree murder charges,” US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said.
Addressing the suspect directly at the news conference, Pirro was defiant. “You picked the wrong target, the wrong city and the wrong country,” she said.
The two wounded soldiers, identified as Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, remained in critical condition on Thursday following the attack. Pirro noted they had been sworn in as National Guard members less than 24 hours before they were shot.
Officials said Lakanwal, armed with a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver, staged what they described as an “ambush style” attack on the soldiers as they patrolled near a subway stop a few blocks from the White House.
The incident prompted an international reaction, with a United Nations official urging caution. Arafat Jamal, head of the UN’s refugee agency in Kabul, said he hoped the shooting would not “colour many of the Afghans in the US and other countries who stood loyally by the Americans during their time in Afghanistan”.
In response to the attack, Trump ordered 500 more National Guard soldiers to be deployed in the capital, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said.
Published in Dawn, November 28th, 2025
