At 2:15p.m. on November 27th, an unidentified gunman opened fire near the White House, ambushing two National Guard troops who were on patrol. Both soldiers were struck, the suspect was wounded in the crossfire and hospitalized. On Thursday, November 28th, President Trump announced that one of the injured soldiers, Spec. Sarah Beckstrom, had died. The second Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, remains in critical condition.
The suspect was later identified as Afghan Rahmanulla Lakanwal, who was charged with firearm possession and three counts of assault with the intent to kill while armed. FBI Director Kash Patel has ordered search warrants executed across the country, including at Lakanwal’s last known residence in Washington State.
Specialist Beckstrom of Summersville, W.Va., began her service on June 6th, 2023, and was assigned to the 863rd Military Police Company, 111th Engineer Brigade of the West Virginia Army National Guard. Sergeant Wolfe of Martinsburg, W.Va., enlisted on February 5th, 2019, and was assigned to the Force Support Squadron, 167th Airlift Wing of the West Virginia Air National Guard. They were among the soldiers deployed to Washington when President Trump ordered a crackdown on crime and they have been there ever since.
Adam Carr, Beckstrom’s former boyfriend, described her as “caring and tenderhearted” noting that she joined the National Guard with the hope of eventually pursuing a career in the FBI. Though Beckstrom often encountered people unhappy about the Guard’s presence in the Capital, she grew to appreciate her time in Washington, he said. Brooke Davidson, a longtime friend of Sgt. Wolfe, met him years ago in a local cornhole league. They had recently reconnected via FaceTime, and Wolfe promised to call tell her about his mission once he returned home.
“He is one of the strongest, most determined, and God-fearing men I know,” Ms Davidson said. “I have no doubt he has the willpower to come out on top of this.”
The suspect accused of the shooting, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, immigrated from Afghanistan in 2021, after working with C.I.A.-supported military units in the province of Kandahar. He had settled in Bellingham, Washington, and has a wife with several children. After 10 years of service, he arrived in the United States alongside Special Forces troops.
A childhood friend mentions that Lakanwal had suffered from mental health issues and was disturbed by casualties he witnessed during his years of service. He had entered the United States through a program called Operation Allies Welcome that allowed Afghan nationals fleeing the Taliban to come to the US and he received asylum from the US government due to his military service.
In response to this shooting, Trump has called for the re-examination of all those who entered the US from Afghanistan during the Biden information, stopped processing all immigration requests for Afghan nationals indefinitely, and ordered the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to review the statuses of all green-card holders who hail from “every country of concern”.
Advocates warned against linking the attack to the broader Afghan community. Shawn VanDiver, president of the San diego-based organization AfghanEvac, condemned the violence but urged caution in the political response. “This individual’s isolated and violent act should not be used as an excuse to define or diminish an entire community,” he said.
