The man accused of shooting and critically injuring two National Guard members near the White House on Wednesday entered the United States in 2021 through a refugee resettlement program created for Afghans fleeing the Taliban, officials said.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, arrived under Operation Allies Welcome, a Biden administration initiative launched after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan to support Afghans who had assisted American forces. His identity was confirmed by two individuals familiar with the investigation who were not authorized to speak publicly, according to The New York Times.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on social media that Lakanwal arrived in September 2021 and had been living in the United States under humanitarian parole.
The shooting occurred Wednesday afternoon near the entrance to the Farragut West Metro station, in a crowded commercial district just blocks from the White House. Local officials said Lakanwal appeared to act alone, targeting two members of the West Virginia National Guard. He was injured and taken into custody shortly after the incident.
The FBI is leading the investigation, which is being treated as a possible act of terrorism, according to officials briefed on the case.
In a video address hours after the shooting, President Trump condemned the attack as “an act of terror” and pledged to intensify efforts to crack down on unauthorized immigration. He also ordered the deployment of an additional 500 National Guard troops to Washington, adding to the more than 2,000 already on the ground.
The shooting reignited political debate over the vetting of Afghan refugees and the broader use of the National Guard for domestic deployments. Hours later, US Citizenship and Immigration Services announced it had temporarily halted all immigration processing for Afghan nationals while security procedures undergo review.
“The protection and safety of our homeland and of the American people remains our singular focus and mission,” the agency said in a statement.
The two guardsmen remain hospitalized in critical condition.
The incident came just days after a federal judge issued a temporary injunction blocking Trump’s recent order to expand National Guard deployments to US cities, ruling that the move likely violated federal statutes.