The United States of America has announced major changes to its immigration system after a deadly shooting near the White House on November 26th.
Officials say a 29-year-old Afghan national carried out an ambush-style attack, shooting two National Guard members. One of them, 20-year-old Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, later died, while the second remained in critical condition.
Investigators say the suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, entered the U.S. in 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome, a relocation programme for Afghan nationals.
In response, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has ordered a sweeping review of green cards issued to citizens from 19 “countries of concern.”
These include Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Congo, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, and others.
Under the new directive, immigration officers can now factor in weak identity systems, security concerns, or poor background-check cooperation from these countries. Processing for Afghan nationals has also been suspended.
For immigrants from the listed nations, this may mean tighter scrutiny, longer processing times, or renewed questioning of existing documents. Rights groups warn that many families may face uncertainty in the coming months.
Meanwhile, in a separate announcement on Wednesday, the U.S. government introduced new visa restrictions linked to religious-freedom violations in Nigeria.
According to the State Department, individuals involved in attacks on Christian communities whether by directing, supporting, or participating may now be denied U.S. visas.
The policy, which can extend to immediate family members, responds to rising killings, abductions, and destruction of property by extremist and militia groups across Nigeria.
With these two decisions emerging almost back-to-back, global attention is now focused on how U.S. immigration and visa systems will evolve. For now, 19 nations face new green-card scrutiny, while Nigeria enters a different spotlight under the latest religious-freedom related visa action.
