The United States will review all permanent resident cards issued to citizens of countries deemed sensitive, following an attack in Washington by an Afghan national, the federal immigration agency, USCIS, announced on Thursday.
USCIS Director Joseph Edlow announced the decision on social media platform X, citing instructions from the president to scrutinise green cards issued to individuals from countries considered of concern.
Asked by AFP which countries were included, the agency referred to a June presidential proclamation that restricts entry and visas for nationals from 19 countries.
These include Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
The move comes in response to a shooting on Wednesday near the White House, in which two US National Guard members were critically wounded by an Afghan national who had arrived in the US in 2021.
President Donald Trump condemned the incident as an “act of terrorism” and vowed stricter immigration policies in its aftermath.
