US suspends immigration applications from 19 countries including Afghanistan
The Trump administration on Tuesday announced suspension of all immigration applications filed by nationals from 19 countries outside Europe, citing concerns over national and public safety. These include applications for green cards and US citizenship.
Through this move, the US administration is imposing even stricter restrictions on immigration. The list includes Afghanistan and Somalia among several other countries, according to a Reuters report.
The government directive issued on the new policy mentions an incident last week in Washington DC where a member of the US National Guard was attacked. An Afghan national was arrested as a suspect in the attack.
Since returning to office in January, President Trump has prioritised aggressive enforcement of immigration laws. He has deployed federal agents to major US cities and turned back asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border.
The list released on Wednesday includes Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen – countries subjected to the strictest immigration bans in June. Under that ban, entry to the US was completely suspended for nationals of these countries with a few exceptions.
The list also includes Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela – which were under partial bans in June.
Under the new policy, all pending applications from applicants of the listed countries will remain suspended. Officials have been directed that all such immigrants must undergo "more rigorous re-evaluation processes". These may include potential interviews or re-interviews if necessary, to fully assess all risks related to national and public safety.
