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Kathmandu, November 29: After an Afghan national shot two National Guard soldiers in Washington—killing one of them—U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday issued a sharp reaction, announcing a complete halt to immigration from what he called “third-world countries.”

His strong response marks another dramatic turn in the strict anti-immigration policy he has been advancing during his second term. His statement also warned that he would reverse the “mass admissions” approved during former President Joe Biden’s tenure.

President Trump had already confirmed the tragic incident in which 20-year-old Sarah Bekkstrom, a National Guard member deployed to Washington from West Virginia, was injured and later died. After a 29-year-old Afghan national—who had previously worked with U.S. forces in Afghanistan—was identified as the suspected shooter, the FBI announced it had launched an investigation on international terrorism grounds.

Officials described the incident as an “ambush-style” attack. It has brought sensitive political issues—such as the deployment of military forces in the U.S. capital, immigration policy, and the long-term consequences of the Afghan war—back into the national spotlight.

Writing on social media, President Trump said, “To fully restore the American system, I will permanently halt immigration from all third-world countries.” He warned that, effective immediately, the “millions of admissions” approved by the Biden administration would be revoked and that individuals who do “not become a net asset for America” would be removed.

In his Thanksgiving video address to the military, President Trump said the “terrorist attack” in Washington had shaken the nation and claimed that the deployment of hundreds of additional National Guard troops was a preventive measure. “If the Guardsmen had not been there, the situation could have been even more serious,” he remarked.

Meanwhile, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Joseph Edlow stated that, under Trump’s orders, strict re-screening has begun on the green-card files of citizens of “countries of concern.” According to him, 19 countries—including Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Iran, and Myanmar—are currently on the special watch list. Many of these countries had already appeared on Trump’s earlier travel-ban lists.

Andrew Wolf, a 24-year-old soldier seriously injured in Wednesday’s attack, is “fighting for his life.” The suspected gunman, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who had been living in Washington State, is also in critical condition. According to U.S. attorney Jeanine Pirro, Lakanwal had fired targeted shots at patrolling Guardsmen using a .357 revolver just a few blocks from the White House. If the soldiers’ deaths are confirmed, the charges will be elevated to “first-degree murder.”

CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed that the suspect had been a member of a CIA-supported “partner force” fighting against the Taliban in Afghanistan and had been brought to the U.S. under the Afghan ally evacuation program. Ratcliffe, along with officials from the FBI, Homeland Security, and other Trump-appointed agencies, repeated accusations that Biden’s “slow and weak” asylum policies had allowed Lakanwal to enter the country easily.

However, AfghanEvac—a support organization for Afghan resettlement—urged people not to blame the entire community, stating that “all Afghan applicants must undergo extremely rigorous security checks.” According to the organization, Lakanwal had been granted asylum in April 2025, during the Trump administration itself, and was set to become eligible for permanent residency a year later.

Following the incident, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced the deployment of an additional 500 troops to Washington, raising the total number to 2,500. President Trump has also deployed troops not only in Washington but in other Democrat-led cities including Los Angeles and Memphis, a move that has sharply intensified accusations of federal overreach and authoritarian intervention.

People’s News Monitoring Service/Agencies