President Donald Trump announced to “permanently pause” migration to the United States after a National Guard member wounded in a shooting near the White House died from her injuries. He linked the killing to what he called unchecked migration from “third world countries” and vowed to stop it permanently.
Trump issued the announcement after 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom died on Thursday. She served in the National Guard and sustained critical injuries in Wednesday’s attack. Her colleague, 24-year-old Andrew Wolf, remains in critical condition.
According to US authorities, the suspect is an Afghan citizen who arrived in 2021 under a resettlement programme created after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. Reuters reported that officials later granted the suspect, 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, asylum earlier this year under the Trump administration.
Trump did not name any specific country in his Trump migration suspension statement. He also did not explain what he meant by “third world countries” or how he planned to enforce a “permanent halt.” Yet he insisted that his order would apply even to cases approved during the Biden administration.
On his Truth Social platform, Trump said he would block migration from all “third world countries” to, in his words, “restore the American system.” He said he would overturn all “illegally approved” cases from the Biden era, including those signed through auto-pen procedures. He added that he would expel anyone he did not consider an asset to the United States.
Afghan suspect linked attack triggers immigration crackdown
Trump said he would end all federal benefits and subsidies for non-immigrants. He also pledged to revoke the citizenship of migrants who “disrupt domestic peace” and deport foreign nationals considered public burdens, security risks or culturally incompatible with the West. The White House and US immigration authorities did not issue an immediate comment.
Before Trump’s remarks, Homeland Security officials confirmed that he had already ordered a comprehensive review of refugee cases approved under the Biden administration. They added that the review covered green card issuances for citizens of 19 countries.
Reuters also reported that US Citizenship and Immigration Services halted all immigration processing for Afghan nationals on Wednesday, the day of the attack.
Trump released a separate statement earlier in the week claiming that “millions” of people entered the US without vetting during the 2021 air evacuation from Afghanistan. Officials have repeatedly disputed that claim.
The death of Beckstrom, combined with the Afghan suspect’s immigration history, strengthened Trump’s argument for the Trump migration suspension. His political agenda has long prioritised a crackdown on both legal and illegal immigration. The case now gives him additional grounds to push for even stricter screening and enforcement measures.
Trump has already deployed additional immigration officers to major US cities. These officers aim to increase removals to record levels, targeting long-term residents and people with no criminal history. Immigration and Customs Enforcement data shows that, by 15 November, more than two-thirds of the roughly 53,000 detainees held by ICE had no criminal convictions.
Trump said his administration intends to “dramatically reduce unlawful and disruptive populations” and argued that “reverse migration” offers the only complete solution to the rising tensions around immigration.
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