At 2:15 pm on Wednesday, November 26, 2025, two members of the National Guard were shot in downtown Washington, D.C. As a result of the shooting, 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom was killed, and 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe was badly injured and in critical condition. Both of these victims were a part of the West Virginia National Guard and were serving in Washington, D.C. that day with around 2,100 others under Trump’s plan to combat crime in the area. The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old from Afghanistan, was also shot during the encounter. He has since been arrested by the police. The charge for this assault was considered to be first-degree murder by the US Attorney for Washington, D.C., considering it was an allegedly planned-out attack.
To provide some context, the United States National Guard is a subset of the military with several critical responsibilities, responding to both state and federal requests. It contains over 430,000 civilian soldiers who answer to domestic and overseas emergencies. There are two sections that make up the National Guard: the Army National Guard and the Air National Guard. They serve in 54 organizations across the 50 states, Washington, D.C., and US territories. They also contribute to natural disaster relief, law enforcement, military support, border security, and more.
Lankanwal, the suspect, had previously aided US forces as part of the Kandahar Strike Force during the war in Afghanistan. He operated with his unit under the CIA and later the Afghan Intelligence Department, specializing in GPS tracking. Lankanwal arrived in the US during the fall of 2021, after serving in the Afghan army alongside US troops. His connection with US forces has been confirmed since the shooting. He requested asylum in 2024, was granted it earlier in the year, and had been living in Bellingham, Washington. He pleaded not guilty to the charges from his hospital bed and is scheduled to go to court on January 14.
Due to this attack, the White House has paused all asylum decisions and the issuance of visas for people with Afghan passports. After the shooting, the Trump administration deployed an additional 500 National Guard troops to Washington, D.C. Since November 26, many events have already taken place to honor the victims, both in West Virginia and elsewhere. This includes gatherings at churches, military bases, and the high schools of Beckstrom and Wolfe. Although it did not take place near CA, events of this magnitude are sure to ripple through our entire community. This occasion has drawn attention and concern from people all over the country and is sure to have lasting impacts on policies and domestic deployment.