After an Afghan man was identified as a suspect in the shooting of two National Guards near the White House in Washington on Wednesday, the US halts the processing of all immigration applications from Afghans.

The soldiers had been on patrol when they were shot. Jeff Carroll, deputy police chief at the Metropolitan Police, said the suspect “came around the corner” and “immediately started shooting,” adding that the soldiers had been “ambushed.” Other National Guards nearby heard the gunfire and intervened, holding the suspect until the police arrived. According to sources, the suspect was shot four times.

US President Donald Trump describes the shooting as an act of terrorism and assures that he will take action to remove foreigners “from all countries that do not belong here.” On Thursday, Trump also announced that one of the two shot, Sarah Beckstrom, had died.

The suspected perpetrator of Wednesday’s shooting, 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, is said to have arrived in the US from Afghanistan in September 2021. In connection with the US leaving Afghanistan under then-President Joe Biden in chaotic circumstances in 2021, tens of thousands of Afghans entered the US under special immigration protection. Large amounts of military equipment were left behind, which the Taliban were able to take over, and Trump has repeatedly criticized the previous administration for how it was handled.

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Lakanwal applied for asylum last year, which he was granted this year. After the shooting, Trump said that the US “must now reassess every single foreigner who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden’s leadership.”

Sending reinforcements

In the aftermath of the attack, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that the president had asked him to send an additional 500 National Guards to the American capital. There are currently almost 2,200 National Guards in the city.

The troops were deployed in August to combat what Trump called “out of control” crime in Washington. Crime in the city has also decreased since the force was deployed.

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Earlier this year, Trump imposed a travel ban on citizens of Afghanistan and eleven other countries. Afghan citizens holding special immigration visas, for those who worked with the American military and feared retaliation from the Taliban, were among the few exceptions.

Return migration

In a post on Truth Social, Trump writes that he is now stopping all immigration from third world countries and asserts that only return migration can solve the situation:

When a reporter asked Trump why he blames the situation on Joe Biden’s administration, the president became angry:

Somali gangs

Trump also addressed the situation in the state of Minnesota with Somali gangs causing havoc, stating that it is a group that is unusually problematic:

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