Trump says US will ‘permanently pause migration’ from ‘third world countries’

Donald Trump said he would “permanently suspend migration” to the United States from all “third world countries.”

The US president wrote in a Truth Social post that the decision would “allow the American system to fully recover” from immigration policies that have undermined the “earnings and living conditions” of many Americans. He did not provide details of his plan or say which countries might be affected.

Trump's comments came a day after an Afghan national was accused of shooting two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., one of whom died.

The remarks and others since the attack represent a further hardening of Trump's stance on immigration, which has long been one of his key issues.

Trump previously said Wednesday's shooting in Washington, D.C., underscored the grave threat to national security and vowed to take action to remove any foreigner “from any country that doesn't belong here.”

That same day, the US suspended processing all immigration requests from Afghans, saying the decision was made pending a review of “security and vetting protocols.”

Then on Thursday, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said it would review green cards issued to people who immigrated to the US from 19 countries.

When asked by the BBC which countries were on the list, the agency pointed to a June White House statement that included Afghanistan, Cuba, Haiti, Iran, Somalia and Venezuela.

There were no details about what the re-examination would look like.

Trump's strongly worded two-part post on Thursday night went further, promising to “end all federal benefits and subsidies to non-citizens.”

The president also blamed refugees for causing “social dysfunction in America” ​​and vowed to expel “anyone who is not a net asset” to the United States.

The post, which Trump billed as “Happy Thanksgiving,” was filled with anti-immigrant language.

He said “hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia have completely overrun the once great state of Minnesota” and took particular note of Democratic state lawmakers.

“I will permanently suspend migration from all Third World countries to allow the American system to fully recover,” the president wrote.

The phrase “third world” is a term that has been used in the past to describe poor developing countries.

The White House and USCIS have not yet provided details of Trump's plan.

Earlier this year, the president already imposed a travel ban on citizens of Afghanistan and 11 other countries, primarily in Africa and Asia. Another travel ban, targeting a number of Muslim-majority countries, was imposed during his first term.

The flurry of statements comes after officials said Washington shooting suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal came to the US in 2021.

Mr. Lakanwal was traveling on a program that offered special immigration protection to Afghans who were working with American troops after the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan.

At the time, the Taliban had regained control of Afghanistan, raising fears of retaliation against those who cooperated with the United States. According to the agency's current director, Lakanwal once worked with the CIA.

Mr Lakanwal applied for asylum in 2024 and his claim was granted earlier this year, the official told BBC US partner CBS News.

He was arrested after the attack and reportedly did not cooperate with authorities.

Trump called the attack an “act of terrorism.”

The next day, he reported that one of the two National Guard members allegedly shot had died.

According to him, Sarah Beckstrom died from her injuries. The 20-year-old from West Virginia was working in the city as part of Trump's deployment of National Guard members to fight crime.

According to Attorney General Pam Bondi, she volunteered to work in Washington during the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States.

The second National Guard member, 24-year-old Andrew Wolf, is “fighting for his life,” according to Trump.

Follow the twists and turns of Trump's second term with North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher's Weekly. US policy is not promoted newsletter. Readers in the UK can register here. Those outside the UK can register here.