Rahmanullah Lakanwal: Afghan Terror Suspect Who Shot Dead National Guard Member in DC Was ‘Radicalized’ after Entering US, Kristi Noem Claims

The man accused of opening fire on two National Guard members in Washington, DC, last week was likely “radicalized” after arriving in the US, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem revealed. Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan refugee, shot dead one National Guard member and left another wounded.

Noem also vowed that the Trump administration will launch large-scale deportations of immigrants from “third world” nations in response to the attack. She also said the asylum system will remain closed until officials work through the massive backlog of pending cases. “I will say we believe he was radicalized since he’s been here in this country,” Noem told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday.

No More Mercy

She continued, “We do believe it was through connections in his home community and state, and we’re going to continue to talk to those who interacted with him.” “So far we’ve had some participation,” she added.

“We will never allow this to continue to happen in our country, allow individuals who came to our country that were unvetted by Joe Biden, allowed to run free and loose.”

Noem stressed that even migrants who are still waiting on asylum decisions could be deported.

“If they shouldn’t be, absolutely. Yes. We are going to go through every single person that has a pending asylum claim, has an asylum claim here in this country,” she declared, when asked if she would deport immigrants with current asylum cases.

“[We will] ensure that they deserve to still be in this country, that they still have the purposes for which they claimed that asylum in place.”

“And that they’re not here being radicalized, and perpetuating dangerous criminal activity against our Americans.”

Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan who once worked with one of the CIA’s “Zero Units,” was allowed into the U.S. in 2021. He was arrested last Wednesday after a shooting spree that left one National Guard soldier dead and another critically injured.

Brainwashed to Kill

Lakanwal, who is expected to survive after being shot by a Guardsman, now faces charges of first-degree murder and two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed, according to U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro.

Officials haven’t revealed much about why he may have carried out the attack, but Attorney General Pam Bondi hinted that more information will be released soon.

“He was radicalized. You’re going to hear a lot more about that,” Bondi told “Fox News Sunday.”

“These young men and women in the Guard, they want to help our country. They want to be here. They are patriots,” she added. “Yet they will not be attacked by a radical Islamic terrorist who screams by reports ‘Allah Akbar’ before shooting two of our Guard members and almost killing more.”

Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her injuries on Thursday, while Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains in critical condition in the hospital following the attack.

In the wake of the devastating Thanksgiving Eve shooting, Trump pledged to “permanently pause” migration from all “Third World Countries.”

“The President is absolutely determined to stop all processes at this point in time from third-world countries until we can have a thorough opportunity to go through these individuals,” Noem said Sunday.

“These countries that people have been traveling to our shores from for so many years under the Biden administration, their governments didn’t tell us who they were. We don’t have a proper vetting process,” she added. “We’re not going to allow this to continue.”

This pause marks the latest step in Trump’s tough approach to immigration.