Afghan National In Custody For National Guard Attack Was In Country Illegally
The gunman accused of shooting two National Guardmen just blocks away from the White House on Wednesday is an Afghan national who entered the country during the Biden administration, a law enforcement source confirmed to The Daily Wire.
The suspect, 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was let into the country during the Biden administration in 2021 as part of Operation Allies Welcome, which was the Afghan refugee program following the botched American troop withdrawal from the country, the law enforcement source told The Daily Wire. He has since overstayed his visa and was illegally in the country, sources have told Fox news.
After publication of this article, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem confirmed that the suspect entered the United States through the refugee program.
“The suspect who shot our brave National Guardsmen is an Afghan national who was one of the many unvetted, mass paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome on September 8, 2021, under the Biden Administration,” Noem said.
In a Wednesday night address, President Donald Trump said the United States must “reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden.”
“This attack underscores the single greatest national security threat facing our nation,” the president said.
READ MORE: Two National Guard Troops Shot Near White House, Afghan National In Custody
The suspect relocated to Bellingham, Washington, after entering the United States from the war-torn nation.
The 29-year-old shot two West Virginia National Guard troops in the head near the White House on Wednesday afternoon with a handgun. The attack is being described as a targeted “ambush” of the troops. The FBI says the incident is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism, asking people to contact them if they have tips related to the case.
West Virginia’s governor Patrick Morrisey says the condition of the victims is unknown.
“We are now receiving conflicting reports about the condition of our two Guard members and will provide additional updates once we receive more complete information,” Morrisey said following the shooting, walking back an earlier post saying the victims had both been killed.
“Our prayers are with these brave service members, their families, and the entire Guard community,” he continued.
Trump, who ordered the National Guard to deploy to Washington, D.C. to quell crime over the summer, condemned the shooting within hours of reports.
“The animal that shot the two National Guardsmen, with both being critically wounded, and now in two separate hospitals, is also severely wounded, but regardless, will pay a very steep price. God bless our Great National Guard, and all of our Military and Law Enforcement. These are truly Great People. I, as President of the United States, and everyone associated with the Office of the Presidency, am with you!” Trump wrote on social media.
Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser posted to X that the shooting “was horrific and unconscionable” and said the act was “targeted.”
Deportation efforts of those in the country illegally have been underway since Trump took office in January in the Biden-era border crisis aftermath, with the Department of Homeland Security largely highlighting arrests of those who have committed other crimes.
The Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general slammed the Biden administration in 2022 for failing to vet thousands of Afghan refugees that were let into the United States. Critics have warned for years that the refugee program that brought Lakanwal into the country created a massive national security risk.
Editor’s note: This piece was updated with information from the Department of Homeland Security.
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