Are Afghan parolees such as the one that plotted a terrorist attack in Oklahoma vetted before entering the US?

According to the Department of Homeland Security, Afghan nationals arriving through Operation Allies Welcome – such as Nasir Ahmad Tawhedi, who plotted the attack – are only granted humanitarian parole into the United States following required screening and vetting. 

The screening and vetting process is described as “vigorous” and includes the screening of biographic and biometric data – such as photos and fingerprints – conducted by the DOD, FBI, and NCTC in addition to the DHS. 

According to the Department of Justice, Tawhedi was also vetted for a Special Immigration Visa, which typically involves more screening than humanitarian parole – though this is disputed by some media reports. 

Though no derogatory information was found during Tawhedi’s screenings, a report done by the Office of Inspector General found the process for identifying and resolving such information for Operation Allies Welcome to be lacking – pointing to the lack of inter-agency system access in particular.