Suspect in National Guard shooting was part of CIA-backed unit that hunted down Taliban commanders
More information is being uncovered about Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the 29-year-old Afghan who allegedly shot two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
Lakanwal was a member of a secret military operation backed by the CIA to hunt down Taliban commanders, according to multiple reports. The members of the “Zero Units” were highly vetted and praised by those who knew about them.
‘This animal would’ve never been here if not for Joe Biden’s dangerous policies which allowed countless unvetted criminals to invade our country.’
One of the guardsmen has since died, and the other is in critical condition. Both are members of the West Virginia National Guard.
Refugee advocates say that many Zero Units members have fallen into despair over their inability to gain work permits in the U.S. after fleeing from Afghanistan when it was retaken by the Taliban. Former intelligence and military officials say Lakanwal would have undergone significant vetting to be accepted into a Zero Unit operation.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed Lakanwal’s CIA connection. “In the wake of the disastrous Biden withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Biden administration justified bringing the alleged shooter to the United States in September 2021 due to his prior work with the U.S. government, including CIA, as a member of a partner force in Kandahar, which ended shortly following the chaotic evacuation,” he said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson blamed the Biden administration for allowing Lakanwal into the U.S. after the withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.
“This animal would’ve never been here if not for Joe Biden’s dangerous policies which allowed countless unvetted criminals to invade our country and harm the American people,” she said.
Lakanwal was brought in under Operation Allies Welcome and was granted asylum under the Trump administration in April. President Donald Trump has halted all asylum applications after the shooting.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi seemed to imply that more information about Lakanwal’s radicalization would be forthcoming.
“You’re going to hear a lot more about that,” she said on Fox News.
Lakanwal is facing one count of first-degree murder and two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed.
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A statement from No One Left Behind, a group advocating for Afghan allies who fought for the U.S., condemned the shooting.
“No One Left Behind serves Afghan and Iraqi allies who earned Special Immigrant Visas through direct service alongside U.S. military forces,” the statement reads. “These wartime partners risked everything to protect American troops, walking into firefights as interpreters, identifying threats that saved convoys, standing watch beside our service members in the most dangerous places on earth.”
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