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Last Update November 26, 2025, 7:46 PM EST
2 National Guardsmen critically wounded in 'targeted shooting' blocks from White House
Washington, D.C. was thrust into chaos the day before Thanksgiving when two National Guard members were shot just blocks from the White House. Police said a suspect was in custody. President Donald Trump was in Florida at the time of the shooting.
Covered by: Alexandra Koch, Bonny Chu, Sophia Compton, Jasmine Baehr and Olivia Palombo
The gunman accused of shooting two National Guard members blocks from the White House the day before Thanksgiving is 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, three law enforcement sources confirmed to Fox News Digital.
Lakanwal, who the Department of Homeland Security confirmed entered the U.S. legally under a humanitarian parole after the withdrawal from Afghanistan, overstayed his visa granted under Operation Allies Welcome.
Authorities are investigating the shooting as a possible act of international terrorism.
FBI officials confirmed the two West Virginia National Guardsmen remain in critical condition.
Posted by Alexandra Koch
Top National Guard leaders return to DC from Thanksgiving trip to support fellow guardsmen
Top National Guard leaders said Wednesday they are returning to Washington, D.C., to support fellow guardsmen in the wake of the attack that left two service members in critical condition.
Lt. Gen. Steven Nordhaus, director of the Air National Guard, and Tony Raines, senior enlisted advisor to the chief of the National Guard Bureau, said they had originally planned to spend the holiday with troops in Guantánamo Bay, according to a video Nordhaus posted on X.
“SEA Raines and I join our entire National Guard family in praying for the recovery of the two West Virginia National Guard heroes who were shot while protecting our nation’s capital today,” Nordhaus wrote in the post.
In the video, Raines added: “The chief and I were planning to spend Thanksgiving with our Guard and Joint Force troops here on Guantánamo Bay, but we’re returning to Washington, D.C., to be with guardsmen there.”
“Our guardsmen are part of the very fabric of our nation," Nordhaus continued. "We are devastated by this senseless act of violence, and we will remain on station to defend and protect our fellow citizens at home and abroad. Guard Nation, I am so very proud and grateful for all that you do.”
Posted by Bonny Chu