File photo of US President Donald Trump | Photo credit: ANNA ROSE LAYDEN
The pause applies to people from 19 countries that were already subject to a partial travel ban in June, further restricting immigration – a core feature of US President Donald Trump’s political platform.
The list of countries includes Afghanistan and Somalia.
The official memorandum outlining the new policy cites the attack on U.S. National Guard members in Washington last week, with an Afghan man arrested as a suspect. The shooting killed one National Guard member and seriously injured another.
Trump has also increased rhetoric against Somalis in recent days, calling them “trash” and saying “we don’t want them in our country.”
Since returning to office in January, Trump has aggressively prioritized immigration enforcement, sending federal agents to major US cities and turning away asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border. His administration has often emphasized deportations but has so far placed less emphasis on efforts to reform legal immigration.
The wave of promised restrictions since the attack on National Guard members signals an increased focus on legal immigration, with protection of national security at the center and former President Joe Biden blamed for his policies.
The list of countries targeted by Wednesday’s memorandum includes Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, which were subjected to the toughest immigration restrictions in June, including a complete suspension of entry, with some exceptions.
Others on the list of 19 countries subject to partial restrictions in June include Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
The new policy will hold pending applications and require all immigrants from the listed countries to “undergo a thorough re-evaluation process, including a possible interview and, if necessary, a re-interview, to fully assess any threats to national security and public safety.”
The memorandum cites several recent crimes suspected of being committed by immigrants, including the National Guard attack.
Sharvari Dalal-Dheini, senior director of government relations for the American Immigration Lawyers’ Association, said the organization has received reports of canceled oath ceremonies, naturalization interviews and adjustment of status interviews for individuals from countries on the travel ban list.
Published on December 3, 2025
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