(MENAFN- Live Mint) The Trump administration has halted all asylum decisions and temporarily stopped issuing visas to travelers with Afghan passports, using the recent National Guard shooting in Washington, DC, as a rationale to tighten legal immigration, according to AP.

Wednesday's shooting near the White House left Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, dead and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, critically injured, both members of the West Virginia National Guard The suspect faces charges including first-degree murder and authorities are investigating the motive behind the attack.

Two service members were deployed as part of Trump's crime-fighting efforts in Washington, DC. The US President has also attempted to send National Guard troops to other cities to support mass deportation efforts, though these moves have faced legal challenges.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan who lived in Bellingham, Washington, about 80 miles north of Seattle, worked with the CIA during the Afghanistan War. He applied for asylum under the Biden administration and was granted it this year, according to a group that helps resettle Afghans who assisted US forces.

The Republican administration has indicated plans to temporarily halt entry from certain low-income countries and to review the status of Afghans and other legal migrants already in the US.

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The office of US Attorney Jeanine Pirro, Washington, DC's top federal prosecutor, said Lakanwal faces charges that include two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed. She told Fox News that there were“many changes to come".

Following the incident, Trump described the shooting as a“terrorist attack” and criticised the Biden administration for allowing Afghans who had worked with US forces to enter the country.

Director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services reacts

Joseph Edlow, director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services, mentioned on X that asylum decisions will be paused“until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible".

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Experts note that the US already has strict systems for background checks of asylum-seekers. USCIS has long faced backlogs for asylum claims made from within the country, and critics argue that the slowdown has worsened under the Republican administration. Additionally, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that his department has paused“visa issuance for ALL individuals traveling on Afghan passports.”

Shawn VanDiver, president of the San Diego-based group #AfghanEvac, stated,“They are using a single violent individual as cover for a policy they have long planned, turning their own intelligence failures into an excuse to punish an entire community and the veterans who served alongside them.”

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