Over 5,000 Afghan nationals flagged for ‘national security’ reasons since Biden presidency

The data revealed that there were 6,868 people who came into the United States under former President Joe Biden's Operation Allies Program that were linked to "potential derogatory information," according to the New York Post.

Of those flagged, there were 5,005 with national security concerns, and 956 people had "public safety" concerns. There were also 876 flagged for fraud. The information was revealed to Senator Chuck Grassley in May 2024 after he sent a number of questions to the DHS at the time. Although many of the flags on the various nationals were resolved, there are still 885 people on the list that may pose a national security concern, the Post reported.

After the shooting of two National Guardsmen in Washington, DC, Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal was charged with the murder of National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom. National Guard member Andrew Wolfe is in critical condition as of Saturday.

With the shooting, as well as charges brought against an Afghan national who allegedly made terror threats to bomb a building in Fort Worth, many highlighted past information detailing how effective Operation Allies Welcome was at vetting those coming to the US.

The Biden White House claimed in 2021 that all Afghan nationals coming into the US were going through a "thorough screening," however, a report from the Inspector General found that there were flaws in the process. One portion of the report stated that DHS officers “did not always have critical data to properly screen, vet, or inspect the evacuees” from Afghanistan.

“We determined some information used to vet evacuees through US Government databases, such as name, date of birth, identification number, and travel document data, was inaccurate, incomplete, or missing,” the audit stated.