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Afghans who worked alongside US troops during almost two decades of war were once promised a home in the United States to shelter them from the extremist intolerance of the Taliban.But after two National Guard soldiers were shot — one of them fatally — in Washington last month, allegedly by an Afghan national, their fates have been put on hold, and many are now terrified about what the future might bring.”Everybody is scared,” a 31-year-old Afghan green card holder told AFP.”We are scared that we will be judged by people for the crimes committed by one individual from Afghanistan.”West Virginia National Guard Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her wounds after what officials described as an “ambush-style” attack that also left fellow Guardsman Andrew Wolfe, 24, fighting for his life.The following day President Donald Trump announced he was halting all migration from what he called “third world countries,” including Afghanistan, as his administration announced a review of all residency grants for people from 19 countries — around 1.6 million people, according to an AFP tally.Now Afghans fear they might be sent back to a nation run by the Islamist extremists who they once worked to defeat.”I made my home in America, now this is my home. If I leave here where I have to go then?” sobbed Maryam.Like all Afghan nationals AFP spoke to for this story, Maryam did not want to be identified for fear of angering US immigration authorities.”When I sleep my chest feels very painful, empty,” she said. “I feel like I belong to nowhere.”- Collapse -The 27-year-old worked on projects for the US embassy in Kabul, where she helped produce education materials that she says cast the Taliban in a bad light.When the American-led international force was there, her country began to modernise, giving rights to women that their mothers did not have.”I did education, I had a big dreams for my country, for myself,” she said from her home outside Los Angeles.But in August 2021, the last US troops hurriedly withdrew from Afghanistan as the Taliban ran riot, taking over the institutions that American taxpayers had spent billions of dollars to prop up.Hundreds of thousands of Afghans scrambled to leave the country, terrified that the Islamists would exact revenge on anyone who had helped the West.”It was so difficult to get into the airport,” said Khan, who describes printing out dozens of documents, including proof that his wife was a US citizen living in California.”There was no water, no food, nothing. And we spent four days in there,” he said. “It was too cold during the night.”Khan, who worked in a university and at a government bank, finally got a plane to Qatar, then on to Germany before being flown to New Jersey, where he underwent two months of background checks and processing.”We truly thank United States. They helped us a lot to come… and rebuild our life here.”- Scared -Khan says he worked day and night in Anaheim, California to save money, often doing two jobs, and now has his own used car dealership.He has also bought a triplex, part of which he rents out to provide a source of income, and secured his green card for permanent US residency.”I was about to apply to my citizenship by the end of December, but unfortunately, after the incident in Washington DC, everything is paused,” he said.”Everybody is scared, whoever is having like a green card, a parole status, or they have applied for asylum or whatever status they have, all of them are scared.”We had a lot of dreams,and now every day everything becomes more difficult, and our dreams are, like, going the other way.”For Maryam, who works for an NGO in California’s Orange County, all she wants is to be able to get her green card application back on track, and for her community to be treated fairly.”What the person did does not represent us,” she said of the shooter in Washington.”We are all committed to America; we are not the traitor, we are the survivor.”

US President Donald Trump’s name was affixed to the Kennedy Center in Washington on Friday, one day after his hand-picked board members voted to rename the arts venue in spite of legal questions.Workmen on scissor lifts added metal lettering to the building’s facade, before dropping a blue tarpaulin to reveal the sign saying “The Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For the Performing Arts.”But family members of president Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963, have criticized the move as “beyond wild” and said an act of Congress is needed to alter the name of the US national cultural center.Trump said Thursday that he was “surprised” by the rebranding — even though he personally purged the board of the center after calling it too woke, and had already talked about having his name added to it.The 79-year-old Republican even appointed himself as its chairman of the board earlier this year.”Today, we proudly unveil the updated exterior designation — honoring the leadership of President Donald J. Trump and the enduring legacy of John F. Kennedy,” the center said on its newly rebranded X account, along with photos of the lettering.Naming a national institution after a sitting president is unprecedented in US history. Landmarks like the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial and indeed the Kennedy Center were all named after their deaths.But Trump, who long emblazoned his name on his skyscrapers and casinos during his career as a property magnate, has shown little hesitation about doing the same thing as president.He has stamped his mark on the Kennedy Center since the start of his second term as part of an assault on cultural institutions that his administration has accused of being too left-wing.During his second term he has given his name to a Washington peace institute, trust funds for children he has branded “Trump accounts” and a “Trump Gold Card” for high-paying immigrants that he showed off on Friday.Trump has also embarked on a huge overhaul of the White House, knocking down the East Wing to build a $400 million ballroom and this week putting up plaques rewriting the history of his presidential predecessors.

A US judge overturned Friday the murder conviction of one man in the killing of hip-hop legend Jam Master Jay after a judge found prosecutors did not prove intent.Ronald Washington and Karl Jordan Jr., the alleged shooter, were found guilty on all counts in February 2024, convicted of murder while engaged in narcotics trafficking and firearms-related murder of the artist whose real name was Jason Mizell.But on Friday, judge LaShann DeArcy Hall wrote that “Defendant Jordan’s motion for a judgment of acquittal is GRANTED,” while denying Washington’s legal bid to overturn his conviction in the case.Jordan had not yet been sentenced for the murder and remained in prison on drug charges unrelated to the 2002 death of Mizell.”In the absence of sufficient proof of any motive — here, a drug-related motive — the charge cannot be sustained. Jordan argues that the Government failed to…adduce evidence sufficient to support the conclusion that Jordan had a drug-related motive to kill Mizell. The Court agrees,” DeArcy Hall wrote in a 29-page order.A spokesman for the prosecutors who brought the case said “the decision is being reviewed.”Prosecutors presented a case of a drug deal gone wrong, saying that Washington and Jordan, who both knew Mizell, killed the famous artist as revenge for cutting them out of a cocaine deal.Run-DMC’s Jam Master Jay, one of the founding members of the 1980s rap group, was shot and killed by two gunmen inside his studio in Queens, New York in 2002.The 37-year-old, record-scratching member of the platinum-selling rap group, was shot in the head, while another man was wounded by the gunmen. The murder followed a series of tragedies in the hip-hop community, including the violent deaths of rapper Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. in the 1990s.Run-DMC’s 1985 release “Raising Hell” became the first rap album to go platinum, and “Walk This Way,” a collaboration with Aerosmith’s Steve Tyler, made the top of the charts.Along with LL Cool J and Public Enemy, Run-DMC were trailblazers of new-school hip-hop — mixing rock elements, aggressive boasting and sociopolitical commentary — and its outgrowth, golden era hip-hop, which included eclectic sampling.The seminal group were the first rappers featured on MTV, and established a new rap aesthetic incorporating street culture — a departure from the flashy, disco-inflected attire of their predecessors.Prior to his death, Mizell was influential in New York as a cultivator of local talent, working with young rappers and co-founding a DJ academy.

The US Justice Department on Friday began publishing a long-awaited trove of records from investigations into the politically explosive case of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — though many files were redacted.Among the material are multiple photographs showing former Democratic president Bill Clinton and other high-profile figures, including Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger, in Epstein’s company.The heavy blacking-out of large sections of the documents — combined with tight control by officials in President Donald Trump’s administration over the release — has fueled doubts over whether the disclosure will finally quiet long-running conspiracy theories of a high-level cover-up.The files are nevertheless expected to illuminate the disgraced financier’s close connections with the rich, famous and powerful, including Trump.The vast disclosure included seven pages listing 254 masseuses — every name obscured beneath thick black bars and the explanation “redacted to protect potential victim information.”Another file contains dozens of censored images showing naked or scantily clad figures. Others show Epstein and companions, their faces obscured, with firearms.Previously unseen photographs include one showing a younger-looking Clinton reclining in a hot tub, part of the image obscured by a stark black rectangle.In another, Clinton is pictured swimming alongside a dark-haired woman who appears to be Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.The White House jumped on the Clinton appearances.”Slick Willy! @BillClinton just chillin, without a care in the world. Little did he know…” Communications Director Steven Cheung posted on X.”Oh my!” added Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. Trump, once a close friend of Epstein, fought for months to prevent the release of the records related to the investigation of Epstein, who died in a New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.The Republican president eventually caved to pressure from Congress, including from his own party, and signed a law last month compelling publication of the materials.Friday was the deadline set by Congress for release of the records.Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said several hundred thousand documents would be released on Friday and many more in the coming weeks.Prosecutors have the latitude to withhold material related to active investigations and Blanche said the files will also be redacted to protect the identities of Epstein’s hundreds of victims. He also said “no new charges” were due.Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer condemned the partial release as “a cover up to protect Donald Trump from his ugly past.”- ‘Democrat hoax’ -Trump was once a close friend of Epstein, moving in the same Palm Beach and New York social circles in the 1990s and appearing together at parties for years. Trump severed ties with Epstein years before the 2019 arrest and is not accused of wrongdoing in the case.But his right-wing base has long been obsessed by the Epstein saga and conspiracy theories that the financier oversaw a sex trafficking ring for the world’s elite.Running for the White House, Trump promised to release all the files.Yet after returning to office, Trump dismissed the push for transparency as a “Democrat hoax.”Trump’s FBI and Justice Department triggered a political furor in July with a memo stating that there would be no further disclosures of evidence from the Epstein probe.The memo said there was “no credible evidence found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions” or had a “client list.”Trump then fought Congress over its drive to get the records out in public, only relenting in the face of a populist revolt.- Ghislaine Maxwell -Epstein’s former girlfriend Maxwell is the only person convicted in connection with Epstein, a fact that fuels the belief among Trump’s base of a cover-up.Maxwell, 63, is serving a 20-year prison sentence for recruiting underage girls for Epstein, whose death was ruled a suicide.For the public and victims, the release of the files marks the clearest opportunity yet to shed light on the scandal.The newly released records could clarify how Epstein operated, who assisted him and why prosecutors stalled for years before bringing charges against him.

Officials in the US state of Rhode Island have denounced misinformation that they said complicated their multiday search for the gunman who killed two students and wounded others at Brown University.Law enforcement identified the suspect as Claudio Neves Valente, 48, a Portuguese national who attended the Ivy League institution decades ago. They said he acted alone and was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a New Hampshire storage unit.But throughout the week, anonymous and right-wing accounts on X flooded the platform with unfounded posts claiming the shooter was a Palestinian enrolled at the school, a narrative that exploded further as university webpages mentioning the student were seemingly removed.”Criminal investigations are grounded in evidence, not speculation or online commentary,” Colonel Darnell Weaver, superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police, said at the briefing announcing Neves Valente’s identification late Thursday.”The endless barrage of misinformation, disinformation, rumors, leaks and clickbait were not helpful in this investigation,” he said. “Distractions and unfounded criticisms do not support this work. They complicate it and threaten to undermine the justice we seek.”The claims began when an anonymous X account posted photos and videos Monday of the student, Mustapha Kharbouch, beside footage police had released of the person of interest.Within hours, Kharbouch’s image and email were plastered across social media, prompting death and deportation threats as internet sleuths homed in on the individual’s pro-Palestinian activism and compared their body and gait to the suspect.Right-wing podcaster Tim Pool, billionaire Bill Ackman and US Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon were among those who amplified the narrative.”The past few days have been an unimaginable nightmare,” Kharbouch said Friday in a statement shared with AFP by their legal team. “I woke up on Tuesday morning to unfounded, vile, Islamophobic, and anti-Palestinian accusations being directed toward me online.””I received non-stop death threats and hate speech,” Kharbouch said.Kharbouch’s legal team said they had cooperated with inquiries from law enforcement and called the campaign “disturbing, racist, and hateful,” as well as a distraction to investigators.”No person should have to endure what Mustapha did, simply because of their identity.”Prior to Neves Valente’s identification, a member of a local law enforcement agency involved in the investigation told AFP that Kharbouch had never been a person of interest.- ‘Harmful doxxing activity’ -Misinformation frequently follows shooting incidents, as information gaps allow false claims -– often steered by biases -– to proliferate unchecked.As media reported the name of a military veteran initially detained and released, social media filled with his image -– and a torrent of erroneous posts sharing photos of another man with the same name.Officials tried to quiet the noise as the manhunt progressed, and also warned that AI-enhanced renderings of the visuals they were releasing could lead to more misidentifications.A Brown University statement, which a spokesman confirmed to AFP was about Kharbouch, condemned the “harmful doxxing activity” and described the steps to minimize the student’s online presence as a “safety measure.”US Senator Sheldon Whitehouse pleaded during a hearing for social media users to “shut up with the speculation,” saying the rumors could overwhelm tip lines.The claims persisted anyway.Brown University President Christina Paxson said the attack and aftermath had been “devastating” for those “targeted by online rumors and accusations.”With Neves Valente named, she said: “I hope that this development also means an end to this truly troubling activity.”

The widow of murdered right-wing activist Charlie Kirk has endorsed JD Vance for president in 2028, firing an early starting gun on the White House race, and offering the backing of the influential youth organization founded by her husband.Erika Kirk, whose husband’s Turning Point USA was a major player in mobilizing young people to vote for Donald Trump in 2024, told thousands of attendees she was backing the vice president to become the 48th president.”We are going to get my husband’s friend JD Vance elected for 48 in the most resounding way possible,” she said on Thursday night at AmericaFest, the first major Turning Point gathering since Charlie Kirk was killed.Vance is due to speak at the gathering on Sunday.The endorsement comes as the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement begins to look to a future without Trump.Vance has not yet committed to running in 2028, but he is widely expected to put himself forward.An early endorsement from a group that has become increasingly powerful within the movement could help to create momentum that makes a Vance candidacy seem inevitable.But it also comes at a time that fractures in the MAGA movement are becoming increasingly obvious, and as some key figures are starting to express frustration and disillusionment with Trump.Last month, firebrand Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene launched a blistering attack on Trump’s second-term agenda, which she said was betraying voters.Greene, until recently one of Trump’s most loyal lieutenants, has said she will leave congress in January, with some commentators speculating that she might make a tilt at 2028.Other figures on the right, including white nationalist Nick Fuentes, also appear to be trying to lay claim to the crown.Vance was close to Charlie Kirk in the months and years before he was shot dead on a Utah college campus, in a political assassination that shocked America and sent conservatives into shocked mourning.The vice president flew to Utah to console Erika Kirk and to accompany Charlie Kirk’s body back to the couple’s Arizona home.Footage showed Vance walking with the coffin as it was loaded onto Air Force Two.Charlie Kirk, 31, was a talented speaker who toured college campuses where he challenged young people to debates on hot-button issues.Edited clips of these confrontations helped build a large social media following, which he parlayed into a movement that worked to mobilize young voters on right-wing issues.A month after his death, Trump posthumously awarded him the Presidential medal of Freedom, hailing the young activist as a “martyr for truth and freedom.”

The Trump administration will suspend a green card lottery that allowed a man believed to be behind both a mass shooting at Brown University and the killing of an MIT professor into the United States.Investigators said late Thursday that Claudio Neves Valente, a 48-year-old Portuguese man was the gunman who burst into a building at the Ivy League school and opening fire on students, killing two and wounding nine at the weekend. He also killed a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), with whom he had previously studied, two days later, according to police.Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem wrote on social media on Thursday that Neves Valente entered the United States through the diversity lottery immigrant visa program in 2017 and was granted a green card.The US green card lottery grants up to 55,000 permanent resident visas annually to people “from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States,” according to the State Department.Noem described Neves Valente, who police said Thursday was found dead by suicide after a days-long manhunt, was a “heinous individual” who “should never have been allowed in our country.””At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program,” Noem said.In 2017, during Donald Trump’s first term, the Republican leader vowed a battery of tough measures to curb immigration, including terminating the green card lottery, after a deadly terror attack in New York. Noem pointed to this incident in her post Thursday.US attorney Leah Foley said at a press briefing on Thursday that Neves Valente studied at Brown University “on an F1 (student) visa around 2000 to 2021” and that “he eventually obtained legal permanent resident status,” but did not go into further detail.Foley added that Neves Valente had also attended the “same academic program…  in Portugal between 1995 and 2000” as the MIT professor, Nuno Loureiro, who was shot down in his home in Brookline, in the greater Boston metro area.There is no immediate indication of a motive in the shootings that rattled the elite New England campuses.Neves Valente’s body was found at a storage unit in New Hampshire along with two guns. He killed himself, Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said Thursday and is believed to have acted alone.Portugal’s Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel said “it is with great dismay we learned the chief suspect, who was found dead is a Portuguese citizen.”Portuguese police said there were cooperating with US investigators.The two student victims from Brown were Ella Cook, vice president of the university’s Republican Party association, and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, originally from Uzbekistan.Six of the wounded were still in hospital in stable condition, and three have been released, university president Christina Paxson said in a statement Thursday.For days, officials voiced their mounting frustration with the manhunt. The case finally blew open thanks to a trail of financial data and video surveillance footage gathered at both crime scenes.- ‘Hiding his tracks’ -“The groundwork that started in the city of Providence… led us to that connection,” Perez said. In Boston, Foley said Neves Valente had been “sophisticated in hiding his tracks.”He switched the license plates on his rental vehicle at one point and was using a phone that investigators had difficulty tracking.The US has suffered more than 300 incidents in which more than four or more people were shot this year. Attempts to restrict access to firearms still face political deadlock.

The US Justice Department will release several hundred thousand documents Friday from the investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a top official said, with more files in the politically explosive case to be published over coming weeks.Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, in an interview with “Fox and Friends,” also said that no new charges were imminent in a scandal that continues to convulse America.Prosecutors have the latitude to withhold material related to active investigations and Blanche said the documents will also be painstakingly redacted to protect the identities of Epstein’s hundreds of victims.Epstein, a wealthy financier with ties to global elites, died in his New York jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.His death — ruled a suicide — fueled conspiracy theories and demands for accountability in a case that sits at the crossroads of immense wealth, political influence and perceived impunity.President Donald Trump, once a close friend of Epstein, fought for months to prevent the release of the Epstein files held by the Justice Department.However, on November 19 he caved to pressure from Congress, including from his Republican Party, and signed a law compelling publication of the materials within 30 days.Friday is the deadline for the release of the long-awaited records.”I expect that we’re going to release several hundred thousand documents today,” Blanche said. “So today, several hundred thousand and then over the next couple of weeks, I expect several hundred thousand more.”As of today, there’s no new charges coming, but we are investigating,” he added.- ‘Cover up’ -Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer condemned the partial release, saying “the Trump administration had 30 days to release ALL the Epstein files, not just some.””People want the truth and continue to demand the immediate release of all the Epstein files,” Schumer said in a statement. “This is nothing more than a cover up to protect Donald Trump from his ugly past.”For Trump, the moment carries enormous personal and political sensitivity.Trump and his allies have repeatedly claimed that prominent Democrats and Hollywood figures were protected from accountability, framing the Epstein scandal as proof that money and influence can subvert the justice system.But the president himself once counted Epstein among his social companions, moving in the same Palm Beach and New York milieus in the 1990s and appearing together at parties for years.The president severed ties with Epstein years before the 2019 arrest and is not accused of wrongdoing in the case.After returning to office, and acquiring the unilateral authority to publish the files, Trump dismissed the years-long push for transparency that he had once encouraged as a “Democrat hoax.”He fought Congress over its drive to get the records out in public, but relented and signed the Epstein files act once a sweeping bipartisan consensus made opposition untenable.For the public and for survivors, the release of the files marks the clearest opportunity yet to shed light on the scandal.The newly released records could clarify how Epstein operated, who assisted him and whether prominent individuals benefited from institutional restraint.The law requires the unsealing of extensive internal correspondence, investigative files and court documents that have previously remained sealed or inaccessible.They may reveal new associates and clarify why prosecutors stalled for years, but expectations of a “client list” are likely misplaced, with the Justice Department saying no such roster exists.Trump recently ordered investigations into Democrats linked to Epstein, prompting speculation that those inquiries could be cited as justification for withholding records.Epstein amassed powerful allies, maintained luxury properties where abuse allegedly occurred and secured a hugely contentious 2008 plea deal in a separate case that critics say may have protected unnamed coconspirators.Epstein’s former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell is the only person to have been charged in connection with his activities. The former British socialite is serving a 20-year prison sentence for offenses including sex trafficking a minor.

The Trump administration announced on Thursday it will suspend a green card lottery that allowed a man believed to be behind both a mass shooting at Brown University and the killing of an MIT professor into the United States.Claudio Neves Valente, a 48-year-old Portuguese national, is accused of bursting into a building at the Ivy League school on Saturday and opening fire on students, killing two and wounding nine. He is also accused of killing a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) two days later.Homeland security chief Kristi Noem wrote on social media on Thursday that Neves Valente “entered the United States through the diversity lottery immigrant visa program (DV1) in 2017 and was granted a green card.”The US green card lottery grants up to 55,000 permanent resident visas annually to people “from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States,” according to the State Department.Noem described Neves Valente, who police said Thursday was found dead by suicide after a days-long manhunt, was a “heinous individual” who “should never have been allowed in our country.””At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program,” Noem said.In 2017, during US President Donald Trump’s first term, the Republican leader vowed a battery of tough measures to curb immigration, including terminating the green card lottery, after a deadly terror attack in New York. Noem pointed to this incident in her post on Thursday saying: “President Trump fought to end this program, following the devastating NYC truck ramming by an ISIS terrorist, who entered under the DV1 program, and murdered eight people.”US attorney Leah Foley said at a press briefing on Thursday that Neves Valente studied at Brown University “on an F1 (student) visa around 2000 to 2021” and that “he eventually obtained legal permanent resident status,” but did not go into further detail.Foley added that Neves Valente had also attended the “same academic program…  in Portugal between 1995 and 2000” as the MIT professor, Nuno Loureiro, who was shot down in his home in Brookline, in the greater Boston metro area.There is no immediate indication of a motive in the shootings, that rattled the elite New England campuses.Neves Valente’s body was found at a storage unit in New Hampshire along with two firearms. He died by suicide, Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said Thursday and is believed to have acted alone.The two student victims from Brown were Ella Cook, vice president of the university’s Republican Party association, and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, originally from Uzbekistan, who had hoped to become a neurosurgeon.Six of the wounded were still in hospital in stable condition, and three have been released, university president Christina Paxson said in a statement Thursday.Investigators released images of a person of interest and an individual who was seen standing near that person in an effort to trace them.For days, officials voiced their mounting frustration with the seemingly endless manhunt.The case finally blew open thanks to a trail of financial data and video surveillance footage gathered at both crime scenes.- ‘Hiding his tracks’ -“The groundwork that started in the city of Providence… led us to that connection,” Perez said. In Boston, Foley said Neves Valente had been “sophisticated in hiding his tracks.”He switched the license plates on his rental vehicle at one point and was using a phone that investigators had difficulty tracking.Authorities initially detained a different man in connection with the shooting but later released him.The university has faced questions, including from Trump, about its security arrangements after it emerged that none of its 1,200 security cameras were linked to the police’s surveillance system.There have been more than 300 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as four or more people shot. Attempts to restrict access to firearms still face political deadlock.”Nothing can fully bring closure to the lives that have been shattered by last weekend’s gun violence,” said Paxson, Brown’s president.”Now, however, our community has the opportunity to move forward and begin a path of repair, recovery and healing.”

The Trump administration announced on Thursday it will suspend a green card lottery that allowed a man believed to be behind both a mass shooting at Brown University and the killing of an MIT professor into the United States.Claudio Neves Valente, a 48-year-old Portuguese national, is accused of bursting into a building at the Ivy League school on Saturday and opening fire on students, killing two and wounding nine. He is also accused of killing a professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) two days later.Homeland security chief Kristi Noem wrote on social media on Thursday that Neves Valente “entered the United States through the diversity lottery immigrant visa program (DV1) in 2017 and was granted a green card.”The US green card lottery grants up to 55,000 permanent resident visas annually to people “from countries with low rates of immigration to the United States,” according to the State Department.Noem described Neves Valente, who police said Thursday was found dead by suicide after a days-long manhunt, was a “heinous individual” who “should never have been allowed in our country.””At President Trump’s direction, I am immediately directing USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) to pause the DV1 program to ensure no more Americans are harmed by this disastrous program,” Noem said.In 2017, during US President Donald Trump’s first term, the Republican leader vowed a battery of tough measures to curb immigration, including terminating the green card lottery, after a deadly terror attack in New York. Noem pointed to this incident in her post on Thursday saying: “President Trump fought to end this program, following the devastating NYC truck ramming by an ISIS terrorist, who entered under the DV1 program, and murdered eight people.”US attorney Leah Foley said at a press briefing on Thursday that Neves Valente studied at Brown University “on an F1 (student) visa around 2000 to 2021” and that “he eventually obtained legal permanent resident status,” but did not go into further detail.Foley added that Neves Valente had also attended the “same academic program…  in Portugal between 1995 and 2000” as the MIT professor, Nuno Loureiro, who was shot down in his home in Brookline, in the greater Boston metro area.There is no immediate indication of a motive in the shootings, that rattled the elite New England campuses.Neves Valente’s body was found at a storage unit in New Hampshire along with two firearms. He died by suicide, Providence Police Chief Oscar Perez said Thursday and is believed to have acted alone.The two student victims from Brown were Ella Cook, vice president of the university’s Republican Party association, and Mukhammad Aziz Umurzokov, originally from Uzbekistan, who had hoped to become a neurosurgeon.Six of the wounded were still in hospital in stable condition, and three have been released, university president Christina Paxson said in a statement Thursday.Investigators released images of a person of interest and an individual who was seen standing near that person in an effort to trace them.For days, officials voiced their mounting frustration with the seemingly endless manhunt.The case finally blew open thanks to a trail of financial data and video surveillance footage gathered at both crime scenes.- ‘Hiding his tracks’ -“The groundwork that started in the city of Providence… led us to that connection,” Perez said. In Boston, Foley said Neves Valente had been “sophisticated in hiding his tracks.”He switched the license plates on his rental vehicle at one point and was using a phone that investigators had difficulty tracking.Authorities initially detained a different man in connection with the shooting but later released him.The university has faced questions, including from Trump, about its security arrangements after it emerged that none of its 1,200 security cameras were linked to the police’s surveillance system.There have been more than 300 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as four or more people shot. Attempts to restrict access to firearms still face political deadlock.”Nothing can fully bring closure to the lives that have been shattered by last weekend’s gun violence,” said Paxson, Brown’s president.”Now, however, our community has the opportunity to move forward and begin a path of repair, recovery and healing.”