The Trump administration has halted immigration processing for people from the 19 countries already subject to U.S. travel restrictions imposed in June.
According to a Department of Homeland Security memo dated Tuesday, the measure affects people from Venezuela, Cuba, Burundi, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen.
The suspended immigration processes include asylum applications and all remaining immigration proceedings, which have been paused for a thorough review.
The move comes days after a shooting in Washington, D.C., left a National Guard member dead and another wounded.
The suspect in the shooting is an immigrant from Afghanistan who was granted asylum in the U.S. a few months ago.
On June 4, Trump signed a proclamation barring travel to the United States for people from the same 19 countries, which are now included in the new restrictions.
Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, said at a Thursday news briefing that the guard members shot were Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24.
