Shocked by the attack in Washington on two National Guard soldiers by an Afghan suspect, the United States launched a terrorism investigation on Thursday and will review the "green cards" issued to nationals of 19 countries deemed sensitive.

Committed on Wednesday by a 29-year-old Afghan man who arrived in the United States in 2021 after serving with the American army in Afghanistan, this act, considered an "ambush" by the authorities, immediately prompted Donald Trump to promise a tightening of his anti-immigration policy.

"We must take all necessary measures to ensure the expulsion of any alien from any country who does not belong here or who brings no benefit to our country," the American president insisted on Wednesday evening.

Following presidential instructions, the director of immigration services (USCIS), Joseph Edlow, announced Thursday that he had "ordered a thorough and rigorous review of every green card issued to any foreign national from countries deemed to be of concern."

This permit granting permanent resident status in the United States will be reviewed for immigrants from Afghanistan, but also from 18 other countries including Venezuela, Haiti and Iran.

The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, drove across the country from Washington state in the northwest to the federal capital on the east coast, according to Washington prosecutor Jeanine Pirro.

There, he carried out a "targeted" attack against National Guard soldiers, opening fire on two of them with a Smith & Wesson revolver, "without provocation, as in an ambush".

The two soldiers, a 20-year-old woman and a 24-year-old man, were seriously injured and are in critical condition, Ms. Pirro said. The suspect was neutralized by other National Guardsmen.

In recent months, Donald Trump has caused controversy by sending members of this army reserve corps to several Democratic cities, against the advice of local authorities, saying these reinforcements were necessary to fight crime and illegal immigration.

- International investigation -

The gunman remained hospitalized under close observation on Thursday. The prosecutor indicated he would face three charges of armed assault with intent to kill.

His motive remains unknown.

According to CIA Director John Ratcliffe, he had worked with the US military in Afghanistan before being exfiltrated to the United States.

"We are fully investigating this aspect of his past," FBI Director Kash Patel said at a news conference.

The federal police have launched an international terrorism investigation and are also looking into "possible accomplices" in the country or abroad, he said.

He added that authorities were conducting searches in connection with the investigation, including at the suspect's home in Washington state.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal arrived in the United States a month after the hasty withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan during the presidency of Democrat Joe Biden, in August 2021, as part of an operation set up to help Afghans who had collaborated with the Americans.

Officials from the FBI, CIA, and Department of Homeland Security have stated that he was not thoroughly vetted upon arrival and benefited from lax reception policies implemented after the chaotic withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.

Following the attack, US authorities announced they would indefinitely suspend the processing of immigration applications concerning Afghan nationals.

AfghanEvac, an organization tasked with helping Afghans settle in the United States after the 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan, asserted that the Afghan community was subjected to "some of the most thorough security checks" in immigration history.

"This individual's violent and isolated act should not be used as an excuse to define or denigrate an entire community," warned the organization's president, Shawn VanDiver.

According to the US State Department, more than 190,000 Afghans have arrived in the United States since the Taliban took power.