Hanoi [Vietnam] December 3: This morning (December 3, Vietnam time), CBS reported that the US has stopped processing all immigration applications from citizens of 19 countries following the shooting of two National Guard soldiers in Washington DC last week.
CBS News cited internal documents from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) showing that on December 1, the agency directed employees to stop processing all immigration applications , including making final decisions, related to citizens of 19 countries on the travel restriction list since June.
The decision also includes a suspension of naturalization ceremonies for legal permanent residents of the 19 countries. Internal guidance states that the postponement is a stopgap while the Trump administration develops new guidance on the review process for affected immigrants.
In June, President Trump added 19 countries to his travel restrictions list, including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The order also partially restricted entry for citizens of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
Internal USCIS guidance documents show the Trump-led immigration crackdown followed a shooting that left one National Guard soldier dead and another seriously injured in Washington last week.
The suspect in the attack was an Afghan who arrived in the US on an evacuation flight under the administration of President Joe Biden in September 2021, after the US withdrew troops from the country.
Recently, Washington announced a series of immigration restrictions, including halting all asylum decisions, suspending visa issuance and processing for Afghans, and reviewing green card applications of citizens of 19 countries on the above list.
Source: Thanh Nieu Newspaper
