Recent Afghan Arrivals Fear Their Futures in the U.S. Are Now in Jeopardy

Tens of thousands of Afghans who resettled in the United States over the past four years could see their immigration statuses in jeopardy following Wednesday’s shooting of two National Guard troops.

The person suspected of carrying out the attack was one of the more than 190,000 Afghans who had resettled in the United States since 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome or Enduring Welcome, programs created by the Biden administration for Afghans fleeing the Taliban takeover.

Hours after the shooting on Wednesday, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced it would pause processing all immigration requests from Afghan nationals. More changes were announced on Thursday: The Department of Homeland Security said it had begun a review of asylum cases that were approved under the Biden administration, and Joseph Edlow, the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said on X that the agency will undertake a “rigorous re-examination of every Green Card for every alien from every country of concern,” meaning the 19 countries from which travel is currently restricted.

The sweeping pronouncements on immigration left many recent Afghan immigrants shaken and anxious.

“It was very shocking, sad news for us last night,” said Toryalai Takal, 40, who worked with the U.S. government as an air traffic controller at the Kabul International Airport and was evacuated out of the country in September 2021 as part of Operation Allies Welcome, which allowed many Afghan nationals — including some who had assisted the American war effort — temporary legal status in the United States after the Taliban retook control of the country. {snip}

Mr. Takal resettled in Houston on his own before moving to Bristol, Va., where his wife and children later joined him. His asylum claim was approved but his green-card application is still pending {snip}

“Now the actions of one individual are affecting my legal status, and it’s causing anxiety for every family and every individual who left Afghanistan,” he said. “One person, and now an entire community will pay for that?”

Most Afghans who entered under the humanitarian program did not initially receive permanent legal status in the United States, and were expected to apply for other forms of relief, such as asylum. Many were granted asylum and have pending applications for permanent residency.

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