FBI Probes Motive Behind Ambush Shooting Near White House

Investigators from the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force are examining what led Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, to open fire on two National Guard soldiers just blocks from the White House on Thanksgiving eve. The soldiers, deployed under President Donald Trump’s controversial militarized law enforcement order, were critically injured. Lakanwal, who arrived in the U.S. in 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome and was later granted asylum, was wounded and taken into custody after an exchange of gunfire.

The Department of Homeland Security confirmed Lakanwal’s identity and background, noting that he had served alongside U.S. forces in the Afghan army. Following the attack, the Trump administration halted all Afghan immigration processing indefinitely, citing the need to reassess vetting protocols. Trump condemned the incident as “an act of terror,” while Vice President JD Vance said it justified the administration’s aggressive immigration stance.

Authorities described the incident as a targeted ambush outside a busy subway station, prompting a temporary Secret Service lockdown of the White House. The shooting occurred shortly after a federal judge temporarily blocked National Guard troops from conducting law enforcement duties without local approval—a ruling paused until December. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that an additional 500 Guard troops would be deployed to Washington, intensifying an already heated clash between federal and local officials over militarized policing.

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