03.12.2025 08:40
The United States has suspended pending asylum applications for citizens of "19 high-risk countries." Among the 19 countries whose asylum applications have been suspended at the direction of President Donald Trump are Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Iran, Sudan, and Yemen.
The Trump administration has halted all asylum applications and immigration assistance requests made by citizens of 19 countries classified as "high-risk."
INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN TO PERSONNEL
A notice regarding this development was published on the website of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). Under the directive, agency personnel were instructed to "suspend all I-589 Forms (Application for Asylum and Withholding of Removal) and assistance requests, regardless of the foreign national's nationality, until a comprehensive review is conducted."
HERE ARE THE 19 COUNTRIES WITH SUSPENDED ASYLUM APPLICATIONS
Under the presidential decree signed by Trump on June 5, travel to the U.S. was banned for citizens of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. Trump also imposed travel restrictions on citizens of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela. These countries fall under the "high-risk 19 countries" category defined in the notice.
WHAT HAPPENED?
The Washington Police Department reported that two National Guardsmen were shot near the White House around 2:15 PM local time on November 26, and the suspect was apprehended. FBI Director Kash Patel stated that the attacker, who was a single individual, had been taken into custody based on their findings.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro shared that the suspect was identified as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a citizen of Afghanistan, and the injured National Guardsmen were Sarah Beckstrom (20) and Andrew Wolfe (24). Pirro indicated that the suspect Lakanwal would be charged with first-degree murder due to the death of National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom, whom he targeted in the attack.
THE ATTACKER'S CIA CONNECTION
Meanwhile, U.S. media reported that Lakanwal began working with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in Afghanistan at the age of 15 and was said to be "disturbed" by the losses caused by his unit. U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth also announced during a press conference in the Dominican Republic that the number of National Guardsmen in the capital would be increased following the attack, and that 500 new troops would be deployed to Washington at the direction of President Donald Trump.