Two members of the West Virginia National Guard were shot in what President Donald Trump described as a "monstrous ambush-style attack" just north of the White House on Wednesday afternoon.
The suspect has been identified in US media reports as 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who entered the United States in September 2021 under the Biden administration's Operation Allies Welcome programme.
What happened during the attack?
The shooting occurred shortly after 2 p.m. on Wednesday near the Farragut West Metro Station, just steps from the White House. According to Metropolitan Police Department executive assistant chief Jeffery Carroll, the guardsmen were patrolling the area when the suspect emerged from around a corner, raised a firearm and opened fire at point-blank range.
Other troops and law enforcement personnel in the immediate area responded quickly, managing to subdue the suspect after he was shot during the confrontation. Both the wounded guardsmen and the suspect were transported to a local hospital for treatment.
Who is the suspected shooter?
Rahmanullah Lakanwal arrived in the United States as part of the resettlement programme for Afghans who assisted American forces during the war in Afghanistan. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed his participation in Operation Allies Welcome, which was established following the Taliban takeover in 2021.
In a revealing statement, CIA director John Ratcliffe told Fox News that Lakanwal had previously worked with the agency as "a member of a partner force in Kandahar", though this association ended shortly after the chaotic evacuation from Afghanistan. Ratcliffe added that the Biden administration justified bringing the alleged shooter to the United States due to his prior work with US government agencies.
Further details emerged from a close relative, who told NBC News that Lakanwal had served in the Afghan Army for ten years alongside US Special Forces. Authorities indicate the suspect had been living in Washington state, approximately 2,600 miles from where the attack occurred in Washington DC.
Response and investigation
President Trump, speaking from Florida where he was celebrating Thanksgiving, delivered an impassioned address Wednesday night, vowing that "the animal who perpetrated this atrocity pays the steepest possible price". He characterised the assault as "an act of evil, an act of hatred and an act of terror".
The FBI is investigating the shooting as a potential act of terrorism, according to two senior US law enforcement officials who spoke with NBC News. The suspect has reportedly not been cooperating with investigators while receiving hospital treatment for non-life-threatening injuries.
In the aftermath, US Citizenship and Immigration Services announced an immediate and indefinite halt to processing all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals pending a comprehensive review of security and vetting protocols.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth revealed that President Trump has requested an additional 500 troops be deployed to the nation's capital, joining the more than 2,000 National Guard members already stationed there as part of the administration's crime crackdown initiative.
The condition of the two guardsmen, identified by ABC News as a woman and a man from West Virginia, remains critical. Initial confusion arose when West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey mistakenly announced their deaths on social media before correcting his statement.
