The US State Department said on Friday it has immediately paused visa issuance for those travelling on Afghan passports.
"The Department is taking all necessary steps to protect US national security and public safety," it wrote on X.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US "has no higher priority than protecting our nation and our people."
It came after an Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national, was identified as the suspected shooter in an attack that killed a National Guard member and wounded another near the White House on Wednesday.
The US announced that it had suspended all immigration processing for Afghan nationals following the incident.
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said it has halted all asylum decisions.
"USCIS has halted all asylum decisions until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible. The safety of the American people always comes first," the agency's director, Joseph Edlow, wrote on X.
Halting migration from ‘Third World Countries’
Lakanwal arrived in the US in 2021 under a resettlement programme for Afghans who assisted US forces and later obtained asylum.
President Donald Trump called the shooting a “terrorist attack” during a Thanksgiving call with service members.
One victim, 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, died on Thursday; 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe remains in critical condition.
Trump escalated his immigration rhetoric late on Thursday, vowing on social media to permanently pause migration from all “Third World Countries,” end “millions of Biden illegal admissions,” and “remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States.”
He did not clarify which countries he considered “Third World,” echoing broad travel restrictions he pursued in his first term that were narrowed by courts.
On Friday, Trump also declared he was rescinding any document Biden signed using an autopen, a tool routinely used by presidents.
Biden, after taking office in 2021, reversed many of Trump’s immigration policies, arguing they blocked people in need of protection.
Asked about Trump’s “Third World” remark, the Department of Homeland Security referred to 19 countries listed in a June travel ban.
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Source: TRT