US President Donald Trump has called for a re-examination of all Afghan nationals who entered the country during the Biden administration following a shooting incident involving an Afghan suspect in Washington D.C. The suspect, identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was shot by authorities and hospitalized after allegedly targeting two National Guard members.
In his address, Trump stated that "we must now re-examine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden." This call for a review comes amid concerns over national security and vetting protocols. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed that the suspect arrived in the US as part of Operation Allies Welcome, a program aimed at helping Afghans who assisted US forces and were facing a Taliban takeover.
The move has sparked controversy, with some critics arguing that it unfairly targets Afghan nationals already living in the country. The Trump administration had previously called for a review of all refugees admitted to the US during the Biden administration, which could affect over 200,000 individuals.
A recent memo issued by the Trump administration outlines plans to re-interview and re-vet all refugees admitted from January 20, 2021, to February 20, 2025, including green card holders. Advocacy groups have expressed concerns that this move may punish Afghan immigrants who resettled in the US after working with the military.
Meanwhile, authorities are investigating the motive behind the shooting and have identified the suspect as a 29-year-old man from Washington state who had served in the Afghan Army for 10 years alongside US Special Forces. His relative has stated that he arrived in the US in September 2021 after facing persecution under the Taliban regime.
The incident has raised concerns over national security, with Trump describing Afghanistan as a "hellhole" and highlighting the need to prioritize vetting protocols.
In his address, Trump stated that "we must now re-examine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden." This call for a review comes amid concerns over national security and vetting protocols. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed that the suspect arrived in the US as part of Operation Allies Welcome, a program aimed at helping Afghans who assisted US forces and were facing a Taliban takeover.
The move has sparked controversy, with some critics arguing that it unfairly targets Afghan nationals already living in the country. The Trump administration had previously called for a review of all refugees admitted to the US during the Biden administration, which could affect over 200,000 individuals.
A recent memo issued by the Trump administration outlines plans to re-interview and re-vet all refugees admitted from January 20, 2021, to February 20, 2025, including green card holders. Advocacy groups have expressed concerns that this move may punish Afghan immigrants who resettled in the US after working with the military.
Meanwhile, authorities are investigating the motive behind the shooting and have identified the suspect as a 29-year-old man from Washington state who had served in the Afghan Army for 10 years alongside US Special Forces. His relative has stated that he arrived in the US in September 2021 after facing persecution under the Taliban regime.
The incident has raised concerns over national security, with Trump describing Afghanistan as a "hellhole" and highlighting the need to prioritize vetting protocols.
This whole thing is just so messed up. I feel bad for the Afghan people who are being unfairly targeted because of one guy's actions. It's not like they had any control over what he did. And 200,000 people could be affected by this review? That's crazy! 
What if it was their relative or a friend who was resettled here after helping the military? It's just not fair to punish them for something that has nothing to do with them.
At least be honest about your motivations instead of trying to use a tragic event to get what you want. It's just not cool.
Afghan nationals don't deserve this! 
[gif of a sad clown]
What's next? Re-examining all Americans who went to college? [gif of a surprised face]
Trump is just stirring up drama! 
so what if this guy was involved in a shooting here? doesn't that mean we gotta let go of all those afghan ppl already living here just 'cause his family came 3 yrs ago? 
what's the plan with vetting anyway? are we gonna be asking all these afghan ppl about their relatives or something? 
. I mean, come on, Donald Trump, you're re-examining all Afghan nationals who entered the country? That's like targeting an entire community for a random incident. And what about all the people who resettled in the US after working with our military? Do they deserve to be punished too? 
It's like the US government is holding onto a grudge against Afghanistan.
. I mean, remember when our presidents used to talk about 'wiping the slate clean'? Yeah, well, this is the opposite of that.
. And what about all the Afghan vets who came here with our help? Do we really wanna punish them for something that wasn't their fault? I think it's a bad move 
But then again, I get where he's coming from - we can't just let anyone walk in without vetting them properly 
.
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. We need more facts before we can even start discussing this further 
.
. We should be focusing on making our vetting process better, not targeting entire groups of people based on where they come from or how long they've been in the country 
...
They've already gone through so much, and then they're gonna be scrutinized again just because of one incident? That's not fair, IMO. 
...like what even is the criteria here? are they just gonna go thru every single file and re-interview everyone from jan 2021 onwards? 
it's a total overreach and i can already see how it's gonna mess with lives of afghan americans who were resettled after working with us troops 