Trump: Guard Member Killed by Afghan 'Monster' Let In Under Biden

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that National Guard Spc. Sarah Beckstrom — one of the two soldiers ambushed in Washington, D.C. — has died from her injuries, calling the suspected gunman a "monster" and blasting what he described as catastrophic vetting failures during President Joe Biden's Afghanistan withdrawal, according to a New York Times pool report.

Trump made the announcement while speaking to military units via video link from the White House, seated alone at a table facing two large screens showing the troops. He said Beckstrom, 20, "was savagely attacked" and did not survive, and that the second soldier, Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, "is fighting for his life."

Beckstrom's father, Gary Beckstrom, previously told The New York Times by phone that his daughter's injuries were not survivable.

"I'm holding her hand right now. She has a mortal wound. It's not going to be a recovery," he said, declining further comment.

Both soldiers had undergone emergency surgery after the attack and were listed in critical condition.

Newsmax and other media outlets reported that Beckstrom had volunteered for the duty shift so fellow Guard members could spend Thanksgiving with their families.

Trump used the moment to draw a direct line between the shooting and what he called the Biden administration's disastrous and rushed Afghanistan evacuation, which brought tens of thousands of Afghans into the United States under emergency procedures.

He held up a photo from the chaotic Kabul airlift — Afghans clinging to a departing U.S. aircraft — telling the troops, "Here's a picture — just take a look at that plane. This is what we had under the Biden administration."

The accused gunman, 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakamal, is an Afghan national who entered the United States after the 2021 withdrawal.

Investigators say he drove roughly 2,700 miles from outside Seattle to Washington, D.C., where he allegedly waited for the two soldiers before ambushing them with a handgun.

Federal records show he had served in Kandahar alongside U.S. forces before being brought to America during the evacuation.

Trump called the attack "a crime against our entire nation."