Shafaq News – Washington
The United States on Wednesday imposed an immediatesuspension on immigration requests from citizens of 19 countries, reinstatingcore elements of President Donald Trump’s earlier immigration framework andwidening restrictions introduced this year.
An internal memo from the US Citizenship andImmigration Services (USCIS), the agency responsible for processing visas,asylum, and residency applications, lists Libya, Somalia, Yemen, Sudan,Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, EquatorialGuinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo,Turkmenistan, and Venezuela, countries previously targeted under Trump-eralimits and now placed under a full halt pending new security reviews.
The directive instructs officers to re-screen allpending and new applications through fresh interviews, updated biometricchecks, and expanded background investigations, a process officials arguerestores vetting thresholds they believe weakened under President Joe Biden.
The measure reflects Trump’s original approach shapedby the 2017 travel ban, a policy that faced extensive litigation before theSupreme Court upheld a revised version in 2018 linking immigration eligibilityto national-security assessments, enhanced vetting, andfinancial-responsibility requirements commonly referred to as the “publiccharge” framework.
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Trump’s latest action follows his November 28declaration that immigration from what he termed “Third World Countries” wouldbe “permanently paused,” a broad and undefined category he indicated wouldapply retroactively to approvals issued between 2021 and 2024, placing severalyears of asylum and residency decisions under renewed examination.
The suspension accelerated after a deadly shootingnear the White House involving Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghannational admitted in 2021 through the post-withdrawal evacuation program, whosecase Trump used to argue that the current vetting system requires urgentcorrection after one soldier was killed and another critically wounded.
In response, Trump ordered federal agencies to reviewall asylum and Green Card decisions issued during the Biden administration,directing them to verify applicant identities, reassess potential securityrisks, and identify files that could be revoked under new standards.
On November 29, the administration escalated theoverhaul by invalidating immigration documents approved with autopen signatures— a mechanical device commonly used in US federal offices — asserting that suchsignatures lacked proper authorization, while the White House countered thatthe practice remains fully legal and widely used for high-volumecertifications.
Federal authorities then paused all asylumadjudications nationwide while designing new security protocols, effectivelyfreezing case approvals until updated risk assessments are completed.
USCIS Director Joseph Edlow conveyed that processingwill resume only after the agency confirms that “every alien is vetted andscreened to the maximum degree possible,” framing the suspension as part of abroader restructuring of the immigration system.
The State Department separately instructed consularposts to stop issuing visas to Afghan passport holders, shutting down a keypathway used during the 2021 evacuation as officials review how large numbersof evacuees were admitted following the US military withdrawal.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt arguedthat Lakanwal’s admission exposed structural weaknesses in the evacuationprogram and noted that removal operations are being prepared for individualsadmitted after August 2021 who may no longer meet updated eligibilitystandards.
She added that immigration from what theadministration classifies as “high-risk countries” will remain suspended whilesecurity rules are redesigned, presenting the current actions as the openingphase of a broader enforcement strategy modeled on mechanisms used duringTrump’s first term.
The White House confirmed that internal reviews areunderway to identify individuals flagged as potential security threats andemphasized that removals will proceed “to the fullest extent of the law” onceassessments conclude, anchoring the policy shift in legal and administrativeprecedents established between 2017 and 2021.
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