US FBI Director Kash Patel said on Thursday that the suspected shooter who targeted two National Guard members near the White House had previously worked with American partner forces in Afghanistan. Patel said investigators are examining the suspect’s background, including any associates overseas or within the United States, as part of a broad international terrorism probe.
The FBI’s joint terrorism task force is leading the investigation to determine what motivated the immigrant attacker, who allegedly opened fire on two National Guard soldiers in what officials described as an “ambush” on Thanksgiving eve. CIA Director John Ratcliffe told US media that the suspect had worked with the US government, including the CIA, as part of a partner force in Kandahar during the war in Afghanistan.
The two soldiers were hospitalised and underwent surgery, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi. They were part of a law enforcement support mission ordered months earlier by President Donald Trump and challenged in court by Washington DC officials.
The suspect, identified by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was wounded during an exchange of gunfire before being arrested. Bondi said the government intends to bring terrorism charges against him and seek a life sentence “at a minimum.”
Following the incident, Trump released a prerecorded video calling the attack “an act of evil, hatred, and terror,” and said his administration would re-examine all Afghan nationals who entered the US during Joe Biden’s presidency. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services later announced it had halted all immigration processing for Afghan applicants pending a review of vetting procedures.
According to DHS, Lakanwal entered the US in 2021 under the Biden-era Operation Allies Welcome resettlement programme. NBC News, citing a relative, reported that Lakanwal previously served for a decade in the Afghan army alongside US Special Forces, including time in Kandahar. The relative said Lakanwal had been working for Amazon in recent months.
A Trump administration official said Lakanwal applied for asylum in December 2024 and was approved in April 2025—three months after Trump took office. Lakanwal, who lived in Washington state, had no known criminal history, the official added.
The shooting occurred midday outside a busy subway station just blocks from the White House, prompting a temporary security lockdown. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Trump has requested an additional 500 National Guard troops to reinforce more than 2,000 already deployed in Washington. Vice President JD Vance praised the administration’s immigration policies, arguing the incident underscored the need for stricter enforcement and deportations.
Critics, however, say the administration’s immigration actions have been overly harsh and indiscriminate, affecting even those with legal status or no criminal record.
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has frequently clashed with the White House over Guard deployments, said the attack was a “targeted shooting.” Washington police official Jeff Carroll said the two West Virginia National Guard soldiers were “ambushed” while on high-visibility patrol near the subway entrance. After returning fire, other Guard members subdued the suspect.
Trump had ordered the National Guard deployment in August to address rising crime in the capital, a move that city officials challenged as an infringement on local authority.
