Thanksgiving Tragedy Sparks Outrage
Attorney General Pam Bondi unleashed an emotional outburst during a live television appearance on Thanksgiving morning, following a brazen ambush that left two National Guard members shot just blocks from the White House. The attack occurred on Wednesday afternoon, with Bondi describing the incident as a "terror attack" during her appearance on Fox & Friends.
Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, a 20-year-old member of the West Virginia National Guard, tragically succumbed to her injuries on Thursday evening, as confirmed by President Donald Trump. Her colleague, Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, aged 24, remains hospitalised in critical condition.
Bondi's Emotional Response and Legal Threats
During her interview with Fox host Emily Compagno, Bondi became visibly upset, choking back tears as she revealed that Beckstrom had volunteered for Thanksgiving duty so other guardsmen could spend the holiday with their families. "She volunteered to be there on Thanksgiving working today," Bondi stated emotionally. "She volunteered, as did many of those guardsmen and women, so other people could be home with their families."
The Attorney General delivered a blistering rebuke against what she termed "progressive left idiots" who had criticised the National Guard deployment. "What these lawmakers are doing and what some of these news anchors on other networks are doing, what their guests are saying is disgusting and despicable," she declared.
Bondi vowed that the accused shooter would face the death penalty if the wounded troops did not survive, stating: "We will do everything in our power to seek the death penalty against that monster, who should not have been in our country."
Investigation Reveals Suspect Details
The alleged gunman has been identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who entered the United States in 2021 during the Biden administration's Operation Allies Welcome evacuation programme. US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro confirmed that Lakanwal faces charges of assault with intent to kill while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
According to officials, Lakanwal previously worked in a CIA-backed Afghan Army "Zero Unit" and had settled in Bellingham, Washington State, with his wife and five children. CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed that Lakanwal's relationship with the US government "ended shortly following the chaotic evacuation."
Investigators revealed that Lakanwal drove across the country from Washington State to Washington DC before launching what Pirro described as an "ambush-style" attack using a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver.
FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed the case is now being treated as terrorism, calling it a "coast-to-coast investigation." Multiple federal agencies including the Justice Department's national security division, FBI, and ATF are involved in what Bondi characterised as a full-scale national investigation.
In response to the attack, President Trump ordered 500 additional National Guard troops into Washington and called for a reinvestigation of all Afghan evacuees. "If they can't love our country, we don't want them," Trump stated in a video message, describing the shooting as "a crime against our entire nation."
Bondi confirmed she had been in constant communication with Trump throughout the crisis, asserting: "We will not be taken down by this. We will not be threatened. We will not be intimidated as a country."
