US halts all asylum decisions after shooting of National Guard members

Tributes near the site where two National Guard members were shot in Washington (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)

The Trump administration has halted all asylum decisions and paused issuing visas for people travelling on Afghan passports days after a shooting near the White House that left one National Guard member dead and another in a critical condition.

Investigators continued on Saturday to seek a motive in the shooting, in which the suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, now faces charges including first-degree murder.

Lakanwal is a 29-year-old Afghan national who worked with the CIA during the Afghanistan War.

He applied for asylum during the Biden administration and was granted it this year under Donald Trump, according to a group that assists with the resettlement of Afghans who helped US forces in their country.

The Trump administration has seized on the shooting to vow to intensify efforts to rein in legal immigration, promising to pause entry from some poor countries and review Afghans and other legal migrants already in the country.

That is in addition to other measures, some of which were previously set in motion.

Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died after the Wednesday shooting, and Staff Sgt Andrew Wolfe, 24, was taken to hospital in a critical condition.

They were deployed with the West Virginia National Guard as part of Mr Trump’s crime-fighting mission in the city. The president also has deployed or tried to deploy National Guard members to other cities to assist with his mass deportation efforts but has faced court challenges.

US attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office said the charges against Lakanwal also include two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed. In an interview on Fox News, she said there were “many charges to come”.

Members of the National Guard patrol in front of the Lincoln Memorial (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP)

Mr Trump called the shooting a “terrorist attack” and criticised the Biden administration for enabling entry by Afghans who worked with US forces.

The director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Joseph Edlow, said in a post on X that asylum decisions will be paused “until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible”.

Experts say the US has rigorous vetting systems for asylum seekers. Asylum claims made from inside the country through USCIS have long faced backlogs. Critics say the slowdown has been exacerbated during the Trump administration.

Also on Friday, secretary of state Marco Rubio said his department paused “visa issuance for all individuals travelling on Afghan passports”.

Shawn VanDiver, president of the San Diego-based group #AfghanEvac, said in response: “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.”

Lakanwal lived in Bellingham, Washington, about 80 miles north of Seattle, with his wife and five children, former landlord Kristina Widman said.

National Guard members, from left, Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe and Specialist Sarah Beckstrom (US Attorney’s Office via AP)

Neighbour Mohammad Sherzad said Lakanwal was polite and quiet and spoke little English.

Mr Sherzad said he attended the same mosque as Lakanwal and heard from other members that he was struggling to find work. He said Lakanwal “disappeared” about two weeks ago.

Lakanwal worked briefly this summer as an independent contractor for Amazon Flex, which lets people use their own cars to deliver packages, according to a company spokesperson.

Investigators are executing warrants in Washington state and other parts of the country.

Lakanwal entered the US in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a Biden administration programme that resettled Afghans after the US withdrawal, officials said.

Lakanwal applied for asylum during that administration, but his asylum was approved this year under the Trump administration, #AfghanEvac said in a statement.

Ms Beckstrom enlisted in 2023 after graduating high school and served with distinction as a military police officer with the 863rd Military Police Company, the West Virginia National Guard said.

“She exemplified leadership, dedication, and professionalism,” the guard said in a statement, adding that Ms Beckstrom volunteered for the DC deployment.