 "Evidence markers sit on the ground after two National Guard members were shot near the White House in Washington, DC. Reuters")
US President Donald Trump has announced that one of the two National Guard soldiers who was shot in Washington near the White House has died.
The soldier, Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died after getting critically injured in the shooting, Trump told US troops during a Thanksgiving Day phone call. Meanwhile, the other soldier, Andrew Wolfe, who was “fighting for his life”, is in “very bad shape”, the president added.
“I heard that Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the guardsmen that we’re talking about — highly respected, young, magnificent person, started service in June of 2023 outstanding in every way — she’s just passed away, she’s no longer with us. She’s looking down at us right now,” Trump said.
Armed with a powerful revolver, a .357 Magnum, the gunman shot one member who fell and then shot again before firing multiple times at the second member. The gunman was wounded in an exchange of fire with Guard members before he was arrested. He was in the hospital under heavy guard on Thursday, and Trump said he was in serious condition.
Who were the National Guard soldiers?
Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for the District of Columbia, said at a Thursday news conference that both individuals were members of the West Virginia National Guard.
According to a statement from the West Virginia National Guard, Beckstrom and Wolfe had been assigned to the DC Safe and Beautiful Mission when they were shot around 2:15 p.m. on Wednesday.
A spokesperson for the joint task force investigating the incident said the attack happened less than a day after the two had been deputised, a step required to allow them to continue conducting presence patrols.
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View AllSuspect had links to CIA
FBI Director Kash Patel on Thursday confirmed that Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the suspect in the shooting of two US National Guard members, had connections to US forces in Afghanistan.
Lakanwal “had a relationship in Afghanistan with partner forces,” CNN quoted Patel as telling reporters during a news conference.
The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, arrived in the United States in September 2021 under the Operation Allies Welcome programme, which provided visas to Afghans who had assisted the US government.
The FBI searched multiple properties in a widening probe, including a home in Washington state linked to the suspect, who officials said was part of a CIA-backed unit in Afghanistan before coming to the US in 2021 under a resettlement program.
Agents seized numerous electronic devices from the residence of the suspect, identified as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, including cellphones, laptops, and iPads, and interviewed his relatives, FBI Director Kash Patel told a news conference.
With inputs from agencies