Washington (TDI): The Trump administration on Tuesday announced a pause on all immigration applications, including green card and citizenship processing, for immigrants from 19 non-European countries, citing concerns over national security and public safety.
The policy affects individuals from countries that were already partially restricted under a travel ban implemented in June, further tightening immigration measures, a key component of President Donald Trump’s political agenda. Among the countries listed are Afghanistan and Somalia.
An official memorandum outlining the policy cited last week’s attack on US National Guard members in Washington, in which an Afghan man was arrested as a suspect. One Guard member was killed, and another critically injured.
Trump has recently intensified rhetoric against Somalis, describing them in derogatory terms and asserting that they are not welcome in the United States.
Read More: US Halts Afghan Immigration Processing Following Shooting Near White House
Since taking office in January, Trump has placed immigration enforcement at the forefront of his agenda, deploying federal agents to major US cities and turning away asylum seekers at the southern border. While deportation efforts have been widely publicised, legal immigration reform had received comparatively less attention, until now.
The administration’s new directive signals a heightened focus on screening legal immigrants for potential security threats, with some observers noting it as part of a broader narrative blaming former President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.
The 19 countries named in the memorandum include Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen, all of which faced the strictest restrictions in June, including near-total entry bans. Additional countries on the list with partial restrictions include Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela.
Read More: Trump Ends Temporary Legal Status for Immigrants
Under the new policy, pending applications will be temporarily suspended, and immigrants from these nations will undergo a “thorough re-review process,” which may include interviews or re-interviews to assess potential threats to national security and public safety.
The memorandum references several recent incidents involving immigrants, including the National Guard attack, as justification for the stricter measures.
