The Motive Behind the National Guard Shooting: What We Know

By Khaleda Rahman

National Correspondent

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Authorities are continuing to work to find a motive of an Afghan man accused of shooting two National Guard members near the White House last week.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, is facing charges including first-degree murder following the shooting in Washington, D.C. that killed Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and critically wounded Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, both of the West Virginia National Guard. Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney in Washington, said the suspect had driven from Washington state to launch an “ambush-style” attack with a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver.

The Associated Press reported that Lakanwal had been unraveling in the years since he came to the U.S. after previously working with U.S forces in Afghanistan, struggling to assimilate or hold down a steady job. The report cited emails sent by a community member, revealing concerns about Lakanwal’s mental health and behavior long before Wednesday’s shooting.

Newsweek has contacted the Department of Homeland Security for comment via email.

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Why It Matters

Following the shooting, the Trump administration has reined in legal immigration, halting all asylum decisions and pausing the issuing of visas for people traveling on Afghan passports.

The shooting has also highlighted ongoing security concerns in Washington, D.C. after President Donald Trump deployed National Guard members to reduce crime. The Trump administration has since ordered an additional 500 members to the nation’s capital.

What To Know

Lakanwal had worked with the U.S. government in Afghanistan, including with the CIA, CIA Director John Ratcliffe said in a statement.

He entered the United States in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a Biden-era program that evacuated and resettled tens of thousands of Afghans after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. He applied for asylum during the Biden administration and was granted it in April this year by the Trump administration, according to #AfghanEvac, a group that assists with resettlement of Afghans who helped U.S. forces in their country. Lakanwal resettled in Bellingham, Washington, with his wife and their five young sons.

The program has been criticized by Trump and other Republicans over what they argue are gaps in the screening process and the speed of admissions.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday that officials believe Lakanwal “was radicalized since he’s been here in this country.”

She said: “We do believe it was through connections in his home community and state and we’re going to continue to talk to those who interacted with him, who were his family members.” Noem did not provide any further information to support the claim.

The AP reported that the unnamed community member had sent two emails to the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, a nonprofit group that provides services to refugees, fearing that Lakanwal was becoming suicidal.

The emails said he was alternating between long bouts of time in isolation and sudden long cross-country drives.

“Rahmanullah has not been functional as a person, father and provider since March of last year, 03/2023. He quit his job that month, and his behavior has changed greatly,” the person wrote in a January 2024 email.

He sometimes spent weeks in his “darkened room, not speaking to anyone, not even his wife or older kids,” it added.

The community member, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share undisclosed details while cooperating with the FBI in its investigation, told the AP in an interview that they worried Lakanwal was so depressed he would hurt himself, but did not see any signs that he would be violent towards another person.

What People Are Saying

The San Diego-based group #AfghanEvac said in a statement: “The recent attack on National Guardsmen in DC was horrific, senseless, and heartbreaking. Our thoughts are with their family, their loved ones, and the entire Guard community as they grieve an unimaginable loss. There must be full accountability for this violence, and nothing in our mission or our values excuses or minimizes it.

“It is essential to be clear: one individual’s actions do not represent an entire people. The Afghan community—both here in the United States and around the world—continues to be defined by its resilience, service, and deep commitment to rebuilding their lives in safety. AfghanEvac stands firmly with our allies, and we reject any attempt to use this tragedy to stigmatize families who have already endured more hardship than most Americans will ever know.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on Meet the Press: “President Trump is absolutely dedicated to making sure that he's bringing this individual to justice, and anyone that he would've talked to – anyone that he knows that would have known about this plan and this attack, he will absolutely bring in and there will be consequences, and they will pay.”

Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney in Washington, said on Fox News: "We are hoping that the more information we can get and the more investigation that is going on 24/7 now, around the clock, in Washington, the more we will find out what actually happened in terms of this individual even being in this county and being in a position to ambush and shoot down an innocent young woman who was doing her duty to the people in this country."

President Donald Trump said in a video address on Wednesday: “This attack underscores the single greatest national security threat facing our nation. The last administration let in 20 million unknown and unfettered foreigners from all over the world, from places that you don't want to even know about. No country can tolerate such a risk to our very survival.”

What’s Next

Trump has branded the shooting a “terrorist attack” and criticized the Biden administration for allowing Afghans who worked with U.S. forces into the country,

Meanwhile, Joseph Edlow, the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, said on X that asylum decisions will be paused “until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible.”

The article contains reporting from The Associated Press.

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