What we know:
- Two National Guard members were shot this afternoon in what appeared to be a "targeted" attack near the White House and are in critical condition, Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said. The gunman was also shot and is in custody, authorities said.
- Rahmanullah Lakanwal has been identified as the suspect, four senior law enforcement sources briefed on the investigation said. A relative told NBC News he served alongside U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
- President Donald Trump said in an address tonight that "every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden" must be re-examined.
- The FBI will initially investigate the shooting as a possible act of terrorism, two senior U.S. law enforcement officials said.
- West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey initially said that the guard members were from his state and had died, but he later walked that back, saying his office had received “conflicting reports” about their status.
- Around 2,100 National Guard troops were in D.C. as of this morning, according to the joint task force operating in the city.
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‘It’s so senseless and really sad,’ woman who heard shots says
A building manager who heard the gunfire in today’s shooting of two National Guard members in Washington said she heard four shots at first and then “many, many more.”
“I started seeing Secret Service members rushing by, running by, cycling by, and more and more sirens,” said Amelia Smith, who manages a building on 17th Street NW.
Smith, originally from Houston, is used to the sound of fireworks and gunshots but wasn't sure at first what she was hearing.
“I wasn’t sure if it was gunshots, but then I thought, OK, no one’s going to be putting off fireworks the day before Thanksgiving. And when I heard the sirens, I was like, this is, this is something serious,” she said.
After she heard the shots, Smith said, she immediately went downstairs from the third floor to make sure the receptionist was all right.
The National Guard is in Washington after the Trump administration deployed it to help with what it says are security and crime concerns in the city.
Smith lives in Virginia and uses the Metro to get to work, taking it to the station at Farragut Square, near where the shootings took place.
While she said it can be intimidating to see people in fatigues, she said that it is nice to have people make the streets feel safe and that she would nod at the people in military clothing.
She said that after the shooting she and others put up a sign on the front of the building that says America loves the National Guard.
“When I heard who got shot — just, it’s so senseless and really sad,” she said.
Suspect was granted asylum this year
The suspect in today’s attack on two National Guard members was granted asylum this year, sources said.
A source familiar with the case and a separate law enforcement source told NBC News that the suspect was granted asylum this year.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said earlier that the suspect came to the U.S. from Afghanistan in September 2021 as part of “Operation Allies Welcome,” a program to help those who assisted the U.S. in Afghanistan.
Officials have not described a suspected motive, if one is known.
Afghan immigrants and refugees have been all but barred from U.S. under Trump
Afghan immigrants and refugees, including those who aided the American military during 20 years of war, have been all but barred from entering the United States since Trump returned to office in January.
On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order suspending all refugee resettlement in the United States until admissions align “with the interests of the United States.” Thousands of Afghan refugees, including many who had already been approved for U.S. resettlement, are now stranded in Afghanistan, Pakistan and other countries, and in some cases they have been forcibly repatriated.
The Trump administration has also terminated protections that allowed Afghans to live and work in the United States temporarily because of dangerous conditions at home. The White House says the protections are no longer needed because it is now safe to return to Afghanistan, which is experiencing multiple humanitarian crises and which Trump described tonight as a “hellhole.”
Advocates say that Afghans who worked with the United States are at risk of persecution, torture or death if they return to Afghanistan, where the Taliban regained power after the 2021 U.S. withdrawal, and that they undergo extensive vetting before they arrive in the United States.
Trump has said he is committed to helping Afghans who worked with the U.S. military, saying in August that “we know the good ones and we know the ones that maybe aren’t so good.”
The restrictions on Afghans are part of a larger crackdown on immigration, including refugee resettlement. For the 2026 fiscal year, the Trump administration has capped refugee admissions at a record-low 7,500, mostly allocated to Afrikaners from South Africa based on discredited claims that white South African farmers are being killed in large numbers.
According to a memo reviewed by NBC News, the Trump administration is also ordering the review of all refugees admitted to the United States during the Biden administration, citing security concerns. The decision, which critics have described as unnecessary and cruel, could affect more than 200,000 people already in the country, including green card holders.
USCIS halts processing of immigration requests related to Afghan nationals
Tonight the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said processing of immigration requests for Afghan nationals “is stopped indefinitely pending further review of security and vetting protocols.”
Trump calls shooting of National Guard members an ‘act of terror’
Trump tonight said that the two National Guard members critically injured in Washington today “were shot at point-blank range in a monstrous, ambush-style attack just steps away from the White House."
“This heinous assault was an act of evil, an act of hatred and an act of terror. It was a crime against our entire nation,” Trump said in an address.
Officials have not described a suspected motive in the shooting today of two National Guard members from West Virginia, who were critically injured as they and others were deployed to Washington.
The suspect was also shot and was hospitalized.
Trump called for prayers for the wounded guard members.
"The love of our entire country is pouring out for them, and we are lifting them up in our prayers," Trump said.
Shooting shouldn't be used to 'attack Afghan families,' advocacy group says
An Afghan advocacy group condemned the attack on the National Guard members and said it should not be used to “isolate or harm” Afghans who have resettled in the United States.
“We reject and condemn anyone who uses, or seeks to use, violence, and we stand with every American who is horrified and saddened by this crime,” Shawn VanDiver, president of the San Diego-based group AfghanEvac, said in a statement, adding that the perpetrator should face “full accountability and prosecution under the law.”
VanDiver noted that Afghan immigrants and wartime allies who resettle in the United States undergo extensive security vetting and said that “this individual’s isolated and violent act should not be used as an excuse to define or diminish an entire community.”
“Those who would twist this moment to attack Afghan families aren’t seeking safety or justice — they’re exploiting division and endangering all of us,” he said.
Trump calls to ‘re-examine’ people who came to U.S. from Afghanistan during Biden administration
Trump tonight called for officials to “re-examine” people who came to the United States from Afghanistan during the Biden administration.
Trump made the remarks in an address after two National Guard members were shot in Washington, D.C. Authorities said the suspect said he came to the United States from Afghanistan in 2021, after the Taliban took over.
“This attack underscores the single greatest national security threat facing our nation,” Trump said.
Trump then accused the Biden administration of allowing people from other nations into the United States, and he attacked those from Somalia who are living in Minnesota.
The suspect is an Afghan national who served alongside U.S. Special Forces in Afghanistan, a relative told NBC News.
Trump said: “We must now re-examine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden.
“And we must take all necessary measures to ensure the removal of any alien from any country who does not belong here or add benefit to our country,” Trump said.
A motive in today’s shooting is not clear. The suspect was shot and was hospitalized.
Suspect is Afghan man who served alongside U.S. forces, relative says
A close relative said the suspect served alongside U.S. Special Forces troops in Afghanistan before he came to the United States.
The relative said Rahmanullah Lakanwal arrived in the United States in September 2021 after having served in the Afghan army for 10 years, alongside U.S. Special Forces. He was stationed at a base in Kandahar for part of that time, the relative said.
He came to the United States after the Taliban took over and eventually settled in Washington state, the relative said.
The close relative served with Lakanwal, supporting U.S. troops, and was injured during his time in uniform.
“We were the ones that were targeted by the Taliban in Afghanistan,” the relative said. “I cannot believe it that he might do this.”
Lakanwal grew up in Khost province, the relative said.
The relative said they have not spoken with Lakanwal in several months. The relative said he has a wife and five boys.
“I don’t know what happened,” the relative said with a shaky voice.
“I need your help to know why this happened,” he said, breaking down in tears.
Suspect came to U.S. from Afghanistan in 2021, Trump says
The suspect in today’s shooting “entered from Afghanistan” in 2021, Trump said in an address tonight.
“Based on the best available information, the Department of Homeland Security is confident that the suspect in custody is a foreigner who entered our country from Afghanistan,” Trump said.
Trump did not say the suspect is an Afghan national explicitly.
Two senior U.S. law enforcement officials have told NBC News the suspect has been initially identified as an Afghan national.
Trump then called Afghanistan “a hellhole on Earth” and said that the suspect flew to the United States in September 2021.
Former presidents Obama, Biden express prayers after shooting
Former presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden separately this evening expressed their thoughts for the National Guard members shot today and their families.
“Violence has no place in America. Michelle and I are praying for the servicemembers shot in Washington, DC today, and send our love to their families as they enter this holiday season under the most tragic of circumstances,” Obama said in a statement.
Biden, too, said that violence was unacceptable and that the victims and their families were in their thoughts.
“Jill and I are heartbroken that two members of the National Guard were shot outside the White House. Violence of any kind is unacceptable, and we must all stand united against it. We are praying for the service members and their families,” Biden wrote in a statement.
