Afghans in the US urge Trump not to punish community after DC shooting

National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, was killed in the attack. Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains in hospital.

Trump halts Afghan immigration after the shooting

Following the attack, US President Donald Trump suspended all immigration requests from Afghans, ordered a review of existing green cards from 19 countries and threatened wider restrictions on migrants from what he calls “third-world countries”.

The Afghan Community Coalition of United States expressed condolences to the victims’ families and called for a full investigation. The group urged the US government not to delay or stop Afghan immigration cases.

Also read: Trump calls National Guard shooting ‘act of terror’, says US must ‘re-examine’ immigrants who came under Biden

In a statement reported by the BBC, the coalition said: “Twenty years of Afghan-US partnership must not be forgotten.” “An individual criminal offence, not representative of a community”

Several Afghans in America told the BBC they were shocked by the attack but said it must not define their community.

One Afghan man who arrived after the 2021 withdrawal said the shooting was “an individual criminal offence, not representative of a community”.

He added that Afghans in the US are “hardworking, tax-paying members of society” who remain grateful for the evacuation efforts during the fall of Kabul.

Another Afghan described the shooting as “really shocking” and said he was praying for the victims’ families. He believed the attack was carried out “without any support or co-operation of others”.

A third Afghan man said the event had been “very devastating for all immigrants”, explaining that Trump’s new immigration pause had created uncertainty.

“No-one knows what will happen,” he said. He added that Afghan migrants now felt pressure both in the US and back home: “For us Afghans there’s problem for us in Afghanistan as well as here.”

Why it matters

Thousands of Afghans entered the US in 2021 as the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan. Many fled through Kabul airport as US forces withdrew.

Also read: Washington DC shooting: Suspect had ties to US forces in Afghanistan, drove cross-country before attack

Officials told the CBS News that the suspect had assisted US forces at the airport during that period. He later applied for asylum in 2024 and received approval earlier this year.

The shooting and the political response have sparked fear among Afghan families who worry they may face delays, rejections or removals despite their cooperation with the US during the war.