Two US National Guard soldiers were critically wounded on Wednesday after being shot in a brazen daytime attack, a few blocks from the White House.
According to multiple US media outlets, the alleged shooter was an Afghan national who had entered the United States in 2021, but US authorities had yet to publicly identify and name the suspect.
The shooting occurred around 2:15 pm local time, when the two soldiers — a man and a woman — were conducting what authorities described as a “high-visibility patrol”.
According to DC Police Executive Assistant Chief Jeffrey Carroll, the attacker rounded a corner, raised a firearm, and “ambushed these members of the National Guard” without warning.
Both soldiers were struck multiple times and rushed to local trauma centers, where they remain in critical condition. The suspect was also injured during the encounter.
Carroll said investigators were still working to determine whose gunfire wounded him, but confirmed that there were no additional suspects and no ongoing threat.
By evening, multiple law-enforcement officials told CNN, ABC News and other outlets that the FBI believed it had identified the man in custody.
Fingerprints taken at the hospital produced an initial match to a man from Washington state who immigrated to the United States from Afghanistan in August 2021.
Officials cautioned that the identification remained preliminary as investigators complete additional confirmation.
The New York Times, citing people familiar with the investigation, identified the suspect as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, though none of the agencies involved had released the name publicly.
Senior counterterrorism officials confirmed to ABC News that the FBI was examining the shooting as a possible act of international terrorism, and investigators were looking into whether the attack may have been inspired by a foreign militant group.
Authorities stressed, however, that no motive had been established.
US President Donald Trump was the first to announce the incident publicly, writing on social media that “the animal that shot the two National Guardsmen” was also severely wounded and would “pay a very steep price”.
He praised the National Guard and federal law-enforcement agencies as “truly great people”.
Following the shooting, US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said the president directed him to deploy an additional 500 National Guard troops to Washington “immediately,” saying: “This happened just steps away from the White House. It will not stand.”
A brief security lockdown was also imposed at the White House as the situation unfolded, though Trump was not in the capital at the time.
“The president has been briefed,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Confusion briefly erupted when West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey issued — then retracted — a statement saying the two soldiers had died. His office later said the information was based on “early and conflicting reports”.
The attack also triggered unease within Muslim communities nationally after NBC News initially reported that the FBI was treating the incident as a possible act of terrorism and that the suspect was “initially identified as an Afghan national”.
“We hope this report is incorrect,” a Muslim political commentator, who declined to be named, told Dawn.
“If it turns out to be true, it may trigger a strong backlash against Muslim communities across the United States.”
Civil-rights groups issued statements urging caution and warning against speculation before authorities confirmed the identity and motive.
Law-enforcement agencies echoed that sentiment.
“The nature of the investigation may change as more information emerges,” one federal official said, emphasising that the FBI had not yet reached any definitive conclusion.
National Guard personnel from several Republican-led states, including West Virginia, have been deployed in Washington since August, when Trump expanded an earlier mission aimed at combating street crime and supporting immigration enforcement initiatives.
The soldiers shot on Wednesday were part of that deployment.
The Pentagon said it was monitoring the situation but had no additional details to share.
Additional input from AFP
