OAN Staff Brooke Mallory
3:00 PM – Thursday, November 27, 2025
USCIS Acting Director announced on Thursday that President Donald Trump has ordered the agency to immediately conduct a comprehensive reexamination of every green card issued to individuals from the 19 countries the administration has designated as “countries of concern.”
When asked which countries are considered “of concern,” an official pointed to a June presidential proclamation listing 19 countries “considered deficient with regards to screening and vetting.”
The directive was also described by USCIS Acting Director Joseph Edlow as a “full-scale, rigorous reexamination.”
Thursday’s announcement comes after a shooting near the White House that left two National Guard members in critical condition, one of whom is not expected to survive. Federal prosecutors have identified the suspect as a 29-year-old Afghan national who previously assisted U.S. forces, including the Army and CIA, and was resettled in the U.S. through Operation Allies Welcome — a Biden administration program for Afghan allies.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro stated on Thursday that her office is actively reviewing the suspect’s immigration record and the vetting procedures that led to his admission into the country.
The review covers all 19 nations listed in a June 4, 2025, presidential proclamation that imposed a partial travel ban due to inadequate screening and vetting capabilities. The countries include Afghanistan, Iran, Venezuela, Haiti, Burundi, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, Laos, among others.
Lakanwal, who served for a decade alongside U.S. Special Forces and CIA partner forces in Kandahar, had been granted asylum earlier this year. The FBI is leading the investigation into motive and any potential broader threats.
However, According to reports, Lakanwal is from the Khost province of Afghanistan, a Pashtun-majority area bordering Pakistan where over 99% of the population is Muslim — predominantly Sunni. During the attack, D.C. authorities say that Lakanwal shouted “Allahu Akbar!” (“God is Great”), an Arabic phrase commonly associated with Islamic declarations. This has been cited by certain law enforcement officials as likely indicative of an Islamist motive.
Meanwhile, in addition to the forthcoming green card review, the Trump administration has since announced:
- An immediate and indefinite suspension of all immigration processing for Afghan nationals, including pending asylum, refugee, and parole applications.
- A full review of approximately 233,000 refugees admitted during the Biden administration, with particular scrutiny on those resettled after the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal.
- Reexamination of every asylum case approved between January 20, 2021, and January 20, 2025.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Thursday that President Trump will use every tool at his disposal to ensure no individual who poses even a potential risk to the American people remains in this country.
As of Thursday evening, USCIS had already begun pulling files for the reexamination process, though no timeline for completion has been provided.
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