Author: Wycliffe Nyamasege

This decision follows a shooting incident near the White House in Washington, D.C., which resulted in the death of one National Guard member and left another critically wounded.

According to a statement from the head of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency has initiated a “full‑scale, rigorous re‑examination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern.”

The move follows directives from the administration of President Donald J. Trump, as part of efforts to ensure stronger vetting processes.

The 19 countries under scrutiny were identified in a June 2025 travel‑ban proclamation. Among those countries are Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Cuba, Laos, Venezuela, Yemen, Somalia, and Sudan, among others. These nations have been flagged due to concerns about national security risks, including terrorism, instability, and human rights violations.

In addition to the review, the U.S. government has also indefinitely suspended immigration processing for nationals from at least one of these affected countries: Afghanistan. The suspension will remain in place pending further review of security and vetting protocols.

Officials have stated that the re‑examination of Green Cards for nationals from these countries will involve evaluating “country‑specific negative factors,” which are part of broader efforts to reinforce immigration security and national safety. This re‑evaluation process will include scrutiny of immigration records, criminal backgrounds, and other factors that could indicate potential threats to the U.S.

The announcement has raised concerns among immigrant‑rights advocates, who warn that such broad reviews may unfairly target individuals based solely on their nationality, rather than their individual backgrounds. Critics argue that this could lead to unjust revocations of Green Cards and disrupt the lives of immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for years, and who pose no security threat.

However, some supporters of the measure argue that these reviews are necessary to protect national security, particularly in light of recent security incidents such as the shooting near the White House. The debate surrounding this policy highlights the ongoing tension between national security concerns and the rights of immigrants, a debate that continues to shape U.S. immigration policy.

As the review process moves forward, the fate of many Green Card holders from the affected countries remains uncertain, with some potentially facing visa revocation or deportation. The move is likely to fuel further discussions on the balance between national security and human rights in U.S. immigration practices.

The announcement follows a rapid tightening of immigration measures after investigators identified the suspect as a 29-year-old Afghan national who entered the country in 2021 through a post-withdrawal resettlement programme.

The President made the declaration on his Truth Social platform on Thursday night, arguing that the move was necessary to “allow the US system to fully recover” and to reverse what he described as the “millions of Biden illegal admissions.”

While he did not specify which nations fall under the label, the term “Third World” is broadly associated with developing countries across the Global South.

Trump said his administration would move to remove “anyone who is not a net asset to the United States” and pledged to strip federal benefits and subsidies from all non-citizens. He further vowed to denaturalise migrants deemed to threaten “domestic tranquillity” or considered “non-compatible with Western civilisation.”

The remarks come as the nation reels from Wednesday’s attack near the White House, where two National Guard members were shot. One of them, 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, later died, while her colleague, 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe, remains in critical condition.

Authorities have named the suspect as Rahmanaullah (also known as Rahmanullah) Lakanwal, an Afghan who arrived under Operation Allies Welcome, a programme created to protect Afghans who had worked with US forces following the 2021 withdrawal from Kabul.

Federal officials confirmed that Lakanwal’s immigration history, including his asylum approval earlier this year, is now under scrutiny by Homeland Security and the FBI. His case has quickly become a political flashpoint, bolstering Trump’s long-held position that immigration poses significant national security risks.

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Earlier on Thursday, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Joseph Edlow announced a “full-scale, rigorous re-examination” of every green card issued to immigrants from 19 “countries of concern.” The list, based on a presidential proclamation from June, includes Afghanistan, Haiti, Iran, Myanmar, Venezuela, Yemen, Cuba, Somalia and others.

Edlow said the reassessment was being carried out “at the direction of President Trump,” emphasising that “the protection of this country and of the American people remains paramount.” USCIS has also indefinitely suspended all Afghan immigration requests pending updated vetting procedures.

The administration’s wider review extends to roughly 200,000 refugees admitted under former President Joe Biden, with green card applications for those individuals frozen until further notice.

Trump has been steadily intensifying immigration restrictions throughout his presidency, but the Washington shooting has triggered an even more aggressive posture. In recent weeks, he has reinstated travel bans affecting several countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East and set a historically low refugee cap of 7,500 for 2026.

On Thursday, he reiterated a call for “reverse migration,” arguing that reducing what he termed “illegal and disruptive populations” was essential to restoring public security. His administration has already expanded deportation operations, with ICE data showing that more than two-thirds of detainees arrested since mid-November had no criminal convictions.

While Lakanwal entered the country legally under a US-backed evacuation programme, Trump has pointed to the case as evidence that broader categories of legal migration require tighter vetting. He described the shooting as an “act of terror,” insisting it underscored a longstanding failure in immigration policy.

The President has not clarified how a blanket pause on migration from “Third World countries” would be defined or enforced, nor how it would interact with existing statutes on asylum, refugee protection, and family reunification. Legal experts warn that such sweeping restrictions may face court challenges, similar to battles seen during his first presidency over travel bans targeting majority-Muslim nations.

He also said the United States would immediately halt all payments and subsidies to the country, citing its treatment of a U.S. government representative during this year’s G20 meeting in Johannesburg.

Trump, who did not send an official American delegation to the Johannesburg summit last weekend, argued that the United States had refused to participate because white Afrikaners in South Africa were being “violently persecuted,” a claim that the South African government has rejected as unfounded.

In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump said South Africa had refused to hand over its G20 hosting responsibilities to a senior U.S. Embassy official at the conclusion of the summit.

“Therefore, at my direction, South Africa will NOT be receiving an invitation to the 2026 G20, which will be hosted in the Great City of Miami, Florida next year,” he wrote. “South Africa has demonstrated to the World they are not a country worthy of Membership anywhere, and we are going to stop all payments and subsidies to them, effective immediately.”

South Africa’s presidency responded sharply, calling the U.S. decision an insult and rejecting Trump’s claims. The handover of the G20 presidency occurred at South Africa’s Foreign Ministry after the summit, as the United States was not represented at the closing ceremony.

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s office said Trump’s statements were “regrettable” and criticised the Republican leader for relying on “misinformation and distortions” about the country. The statement stressed South Africa’s continued commitment to the G20, highlighting the successful Johannesburg summit and the participation of U.S. businesses and civil society organisations in related events.

This year’s Johannesburg summit was the first held on African soil. Washington, a founding G20 member and the world’s largest economy, opposed South Africa’s agenda, particularly proposals focusing on climate change, and did not sign the summit’s final declaration.

Trump has frequently targeted South Africa since returning to office, accusing the country of being anti-American due to its diplomatic ties with China, Russia, and Iran. His administration has also limited the number of refugees admitted from South Africa, prioritising mostly white applicants, and has suspended parts of the refugee programme that had been in place since January.

Rwanda and the DRC signed a peace agreement on June 27, 2025, with support from the United States. The agreement includes the neutralisation of the FDLR to enable Rwanda to lift its defensive measures along the border with the DRC. These operations are detailed in a project called “CONOPS”, approved in October 2024 during peace talks in Luanda, Angola.

In an interview with Radio France Internationale (RFI) on November 26, Minister Nduhungirehe said that, under the Washington Agreement, dismantling the FDLR is a prerequisite for Rwanda to lift its defensive measures.

“There will be no peace unless the FDLR genocidaires, supported and funded by Kinshasa and even integrated into the army, are neutralised, as required by the CONOPS signed under the Washington peace agreement. Neutralising these FDLR members will pave the way for lifting Rwanda’s defence measures,” he said.

The DRC has indicated that it has launched the process of dismantling the FDLR, referencing a communiqué of October 10 calling on its armed forces to break all collaboration with the group, as well as a “sensitisation campaign” in Walikale territory, North Kivu, aimed at persuading FDLR fighters to lay down their arms.

Minister Nduhungirehe, however, stated that the militia group linked to the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda are still present and continue to receive support from Kinshasa.

“Technical teams are discussing in Washington, and we hope progress will be made. In any case, nothing will happen without Kinshasa’s good faith and political will on the FDLR issue. The FDLR remain integrated into the Congolese army and supported by Kinshasa,” he said.

The Minister stressed that the Washington peace agreement calls for concrete actions, including the effective neutralisation of the FDLR, not just mapping, communiqués, or calls to lay down arms. He assured that Rwanda will honour all its commitments under the U.S.-led process.