Afghan Evacuee ID'd in Ambush Shooting of D.C. Guardsmen

The suspect who opened fire on two National Guard troops near the White House on Wednesday has been identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, according to the New York Post.

CBS News and NBC News reported the same.

The New York Post reported that Lakanwal arrived in the United States under Operation Allies Welcome following the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal and later resettled in Bellingham, Washington.

He allegedly waited in hiding before stepping out near the Farragut West Metro Station in northwest D.C. around 2:15 p.m. and shooting a female Guard member in the chest and head, the New York Post reported.

He then allegedly shot a second guard until a third Guardsman rushed in and subdued him, according to the New York Post.

The New York Post said both soldiers were taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition.

Lakanwal, who was reportedly shot four times, was transported to an ambulance nearly naked. He is believed to have acted alone, the New York Post reported.

Police have not yet identified a motive for the attack, according to the New York Post.

The New York Post reported that the FBI is initially treating the shooting as a possible act of terrorism.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser told reporters it appeared to be a “targeted shooting” focused on the Guard troops, according to the New York Post.

The ambush unfolded near Farragut Square in a busy corridor of shops and restaurants, the New York Post reported.

The New York Post said President Donald Trump was in Florida and Vice President JD Vance was in Kentucky at the time of the shooting.

Trump has ordered 500 additional National Guard troops into Washington, D.C., according to the New York Post.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Trump directed him to request the reinforcements from the Secretary of the Army and the National Guard, the New York Post reported.

Hegseth told reporters the administration’s determination to secure the capital “will only stiffen,” citing what he described as historic improvements in public safety, according to the New York Post.

Roughly 2,100 National Guard troops were already deployed in D.C., including about 900 from the D.C. Guard and 1,200 from other states, a Pentagon official told the New York Post.