Trump Admin ‘Looking at’ Deporting Rahmanullah Lakanwal’s...

By Billal Rahman

Immigration Reporter

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President Donald Trump said Thursday that his administration is examining whether to deport the family of Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the suspect accused of shooting two National Guard members in Washington, D.C.

When asked directly by a reporter whether he intends to remove Lakanwal’s wife and children from the United States, Trump responded: “Well, we’re looking at that right now. We’re looking at the whole situation with family.”

Why It Matters

The two West Virginia National Guard members were attacked while deployed in Washington, D.C. Sarah Beckstrom, one of the soldiers shot near the White House, has died, Trump said on Thursday evening. The second soldier, Andrew Wolfe, underwent surgery, though Trump said Thursday that he remains “in bad shape” and is fighting for his life.

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What To Know

Lakanwal, 29, from Washington state, allegedly drove to Washington, D.C., and shot Beckstrom and Wolfe on Wednesday in what officials described as an “ambush-style” attack using a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver. Lakanwal was wounded and taken into custody by responding troops, according to U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro.

Beckstrom, 20, and Wolfe, 24, had been deployed to the nation's capital since August as part of a federal surge supporting an order by Trump to crack down on crime in the city.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe said Lakanwal previously worked with the agency in Afghanistan.

Lakanwal entered the United States in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, according to the Department of Homeland Security. The initiative provided entry to roughly 76,000 Afghans after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban’s return to power that year.

The Trump administration has placed blame soley on the Biden administration for admitting what it describes as “unvetted” Afghans into the United States, though Lakanwal’s asylum application was approved earlier this year under the incumbent Trump administration.

Hours after announcing Beckstrom’s death, Trump claimed he would “permanently pause migration from all Third World countries,” though he did not specify which countries will be impacted.

Meanwhile, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced Wednesday that all immigration processing for Afghan nationals has been indefinitely suspended. The agency has also ordered a comprehensive review of all green cards issued to immigrants from high-risk countries.

What People Are Saying

General Steven Nordhaus, the chief of the National Guard Bureau, said: "We are devastated by this senseless act of violence."

CIA Director John Ratcliffe, told Fox News Digital: "In the wake of the disastrous Biden withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Biden administration justified bringing the alleged shooter to the United States in September 2021 due to his prior work with the U.S. government, including CIA, as a member of a partner force in Kandahar, which ended shortly following the chaotic evacuation."

U.S. Attorney General of the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said at a press conference on Thursday: "These guardsmen and all who are here to protect the district are the line that separates a civilized society from a barbaric one. They are the ones who stand for law and order. This was not just an attack, it was a direct challenge to law and order in our nation’s capital."

Attorney General Pam Bondi said of the shooter: "I'll tell you right now, we will do everything in our power to seek the death penalty for that monster, who should not have been in our country."