Topline
The suspect in Wednesday’s shooting in Washington, D.C—which critically wounded two National Guard members—was identified as an Afghan man who worked with the U.S. during the war in Afghanistan, including work with the CIA, before coming to the U.S. under a Biden-era resettlement program in September 2021.
National Guard patrol on the National Mall near the U.S. Capitol, Wednesday.
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Key Facts
CIA Director John Ratcliffe said Thursday that the suspected shooter worked with CIA-backed military units in Afghanistan, multiple outlets reported.
While addressing the attacks on Wednesday night, President Donald Trump said the Department of Homeland Security is “confident that the suspect in custody is a foreigner who entered our country from Afghanistan, a hellhole on earth.”
Trump claimed he was flown into the U.S. “by the Biden administration in September 2021,” and his “status was extended under legislation signed by President Biden”—likely referring to the “Operation Allies Welcome,” which allowed certain Afghan asylum seekers to remain in the U.S. for two years.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem reiterated this in an X post, saying the suspect is an “Afghan national who was one of the many unvetted, mass paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome.”
Noem added she will “not utter this depraved individual’s name,” adding, “He should be starved of the glory he so desperately wants.”
Citing four unnamed “senior law enforcement sources,” NBC News reported the suspect has been identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29.
What Do We Know About Rahmanullah Lakanwal?
The NBC report added that Lakanwal served in the Afghan army for 10 years alongside U.S. Special Forces soldiers. The suspected gunman had been stationed at a base in Kandahar, Afghanistan’s second-largest city, while serving in the country’s army, the report added, citing Lakanwal’s relative. The relative expressed disbelief that Lakanwal would carry out such an attack, and added, “We were the ones that were targeted by the Taliban in Afghanistan.” The 29-year-old reportedly grew up in the Khost province, which borders Pakistan. He had been living with his wife and five children in Bellingham, Washington, since moving to the U.S.