WASHINGTON (AP) — Two West Virginia National Guard members who deployed to the nation’s capital were shot Wednesday afternoon just blocks from the White House in a brazen act of violence that the mayor described as a targeted attack.

FBI Director Kash Patel and Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said they were hospitalized in critical condition.

The rare shooting of National Guard members, on the day before Thanksgiving, comes as the presence of the troops in the nation’s capital and other cities around the country has been a flashpoint issue for months, fueling court fights and a broader public policy debate about the Trump administration’s use of the military to combat what officials cast as an out-of-control crime problem.

A suspect who was in custody also was shot and had wounds that were not believed to be life-threatening, according to a law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.

The 29-year-old suspect, an Afghan national, entered the U.S. in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a Biden administration program that evacuated and resettled tens of thousands of Afghans after the U.S. withdrawal from the country, officials said.

The initiative brought roughly 76,000 people to the U.S., many of whom had worked alongside U.S. troops and diplomats as interpreters and translators. It has since faced intense scrutiny from Trump and his allies, congressional Republicans and some government watchdogs over gaps in the vetting process and the speed of admissions, even as advocates say it offered a lifeline to people at risk of Taliban reprisals.

The suspect, who has been living in Washington state, has been identified by law enforcement officials as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, but authorities were still working to fully confirm his background, two law enforcement officials and a person familiar with the matter said. The people could not discuss details of an ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Lakamal arrived in Bellingham, Washington, about 79 miles (127.1 kilometers) north of Seattle, with his wife and five children, said his former landlord Kristina Widman.

Wednesday night, in a video message released on social media, President Donald Trump called for the reinvestigation of all Afghan refugees who entered under the Biden administration.

“If they can’t love our country, we don’t want them,” he said, adding that the shooting was “a crime against our entire nation.”

Jeffery Carroll, an executive assistant D.C. police chief, said investigators had no information on a motive. He said the assailant “came around the corner” and immediately started firing at the troops, citing video reviewed by investigators.

West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey initially said the troops had died, but he later walked that statement back to say his office was “receiving conflicting reports” about their condition.

The Trump administration quickly ordered 500 more National Guard members to Washington. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Trump asked him to send the troops.

Nearly 2,200 troops currently are assigned to the joint task force operating in the city, according to the government’s latest update.

Troops held down the shooter

The shooting happened roughly two blocks northwest of the White House near a metro station. Hearing gunfire, other troops in the area ran over and held down the gunman after he was shot, Carroll said.

“It appears to be a lone gunman that raised a firearm and ambushed these members of the National Guard,” Carroll said, adding that it was not clear whether one of the guard members or a law enforcement officer shot the suspect.

“At this point we have no other suspects,” Carroll said at a news conference.

At least one of the guard members exchanged gunfire with the shooter, said another law enforcement official who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Social media video shared in the immediate aftermath showed first responders performing CPR on one of the troops and treating the other on a glass-covered sidewalk.

Witnesses saw people fleeing

Stacy Walters said she was in a car when she heard two gunshots and saw people running. Almost instantly, law enforcement swarmed the area. “It’s such a beautiful day. Who would do this? And we’re getting ready for the holidays?”

Emma McDonald, who exited a metro station just after the shots were fired, said she and a friend sought safety with others in a cafe. McDonald told AP that minutes later she saw first responders rolling a stretcher carrying a National Guard member whose head was covered in blood.

Police tape cordoned off the scene, and fire and police vehicle lights flashed and helicopter blades thudded overhead. Agents from the Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were there, and National Guard troops stood sentry nearby. At least one helicopter landed on the National Mall.

“I think it’s a somber reminder that soldiers, whether they’re active duty, reserve or National Guard, our soldiers are the sword and the shield of the United States of America,” Vice President JD Vance said in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, where he delivered a Thanksgiving message to troops.

Gen. Steven Nordhaus, chief of the National Guard Bureau, scrapped plans to spend the holiday with troops at Guantanamo Bay in order to travel to D.C. and be with guard members there instead.

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll said on social media that he visited the wounded National Guard members in the hospital and that his “heart breaks for them.”

Troops deployed to DC under emergency order

Trump issued an emergency order in August that federalized the local police force and sent in National Guard troops from eight states and the District of Columbia. The order expired a month later, but the troops remained.

Last week a federal judge ordered an end to the deployment, but she also put her order on hold for 21 days to allow the administration time to either remove the troops or appeal.

The guard members have patrolled neighborhoods, train stations and other locations, participated in highway checkpoints and been assigned to pick up trash and guard sports events.

More than 300 West Virginia National Guard members were deployed in August. About 160 of them volunteered last week to extend their deployment until the end of the year, while the others returned home just over a week ago.

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This story has been updated to correct that the Washington police official's first name is spelled Jeffery, not Jeffrey.

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Associated Press journalists Konstantin Toropin, Seung Min Kim, Safiyah Riddle, Matt Brown, Mike Balsamo, Eric Tucker, Jesse Bedayn, Evan Vucci, Nathan Ellgren, John Raby, Hallie Golden, Michael R. Sisak and John Seewer contributed.

FBI Director Kash Patel, Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and city police give an update on the shooting of two National Guardsmen near the White House.

Two West Virginia National Guard members were critically injured in a shooting near The White House on Wednesday afternoon, described as a targeted attack by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. The shooting is being investigated as a "possible act of terrorism."

Two West Virginia National Guard members were shot near the White House on Wednesday afternoon and are in critical condition, according to FBI Director Kash Patel, who spoke at a press conference later in the day.

Two West Virginia National Guard members were shot near the White House in what officials called a “targeted attack” on Wednesday, with the suspect, an Afghan national, taken into custody.

Both West Virginia guard members are hospitalized in critical condition, FBI Director Kash Patel said at a press conference. The governor of West Virginia prematurely said they had been killed in a social media post on Wednesday afternoon.

President Trump said Wednesday night his administration would review the cases of people from Afghanistan who entered the United States during the Biden administration, while U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced immigration from Afghanistan would be halted.

Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said 500 additional National Guard troops would be deployed to Washington, D.C., in response to the attack.

What we know about the victims

Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, identified the victims on Thursday as Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24. She said they were sworn in less than 24 hours before they were shot.

At around 2:15 p.m., the two guard members were shot near the Farragut Square Metro Station in the area of 17th and I streets NW, the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) stated. MPD officers responded to shooting shortly after.

National Guard members were on “high visibility patrols” before the two guard members were “ambushed” as a person “came around the corner, raised his arm with a firearm” and shot them, Jeffrey Carroll, executive assistant chief of the MPD, said at a press conference.

Both guard members were taken to a nearby hospital. Pirro said they were still undergoing surgery as of Thursday morning.

After the suspect was shot, other National Guard members nearby held him down before he was taken into custody, Carroll said.

What we know about the suspect

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, is an Afghan national who entered the United States in September 2021, multiple media outlets have reported.

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The CIA said on Thursday that Lakanwal worked with the agency in Afghanistan until the U.S. withdrawal in 2021.

Pirro said Thursday he was a resident of Bellingham, Wash., and drove across the country with a plan to carry out the attack.

He has been charged with three counts of assault with intent to kill while armed and one count of possession of a firearm during a time of violence, she said.

Attorney General Pam Bondi told Fox News on Thursday morning that prosecutors would seek the death penalty against Lakanwal.

Lakanwal was shot and then hospitalized following the shooting, Carroll said. His injuries were not life-threatening, The Guardian reported.

Police found a handgun believed to have been used in the shooting, CNN reported. Investigators are looking into how Lakanwal allegedly obtained the weapon.

Lakanwal entered the United States in 2021 through the program “Operation Allies Welcome” following the Biden administration’s exit from Afghanistan that same year, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a post on social platform X.

“This Afghan national was paroled in by the Biden Administration. After that, Biden signed into law that parole program, and then entered into the 2023 Ahmed Court Settlement, which bound USCIS to adjudicate his asylum claim on an expedited basis,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement. “Regardless if his asylum was granted or not, this monster would not have been removed because of his parole.”

Following the shooting, President Trump directed his administration to review the cases of individuals from Afghanistan who entered the United States during the Biden administration.

USCIS said the processing of all immigration requests from Afghan citizens has stopped indefinitely “pending further review of security and vetting protocols,” according to a post on X.

McLaughlin confirmed the move on Thursday.

“Effective immediately, processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals is stopped indefinitely pending further review of security and vetting protocols,” she said in a statement. “The Trump Administration is also reviewing all asylum cases approved under the Biden Administration, which failed to vet these applicants on a massive scale.”

Before the shooting, the Trump administration on Tuesday called on USCIS to “re-interview” the roughly 200,000 Afghan refugees who entered the U.S. since 2021. The move could remove the temporary protected status of those who fled Afghanistan after the Taliban’s takeover.

Trump said that the suspect’s temporary protected status “was extended under legislation signed by President Biden.” CNN reported that his asylum application was approved this year, under the Trump administration.

Shawn VanDiver, president of #AfghanEvac, a coalition group that helps Afghans immigrate across the globe, said the shooting must “not be used as an excuse to define or diminish an entire community.”

What officials are saying

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) called the attack “horrific and unconscionable.”

“We can confirm that a suspect is in custody for this targeted shooting and will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” she posted on X.

Trump initially said on Truth Social that the suspect, whom he called an “animal,” “will pay a very steep price.”

“As we are filled with anguish and grief for those who were shot, we’re also filled with righteous anger and ferocious resolve,” the president said later in his televised speech.

The president added that the attack will escalate the administration’s crackdown on immigration in the United States and on refugees allowed into the country from Afghanistan following the 2021 withdrawal.

“During this time of the year, when we gather home with loved ones, these two patriots were wearing the uniform of our country patrolling the streets of our capital,” he said. “They had taken a selfless oath to defend our nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic, and that is exactly what they were doing when they were gunned down in a savage attack.”

Why is the National Guard in DC?

In the aftermath of the shooting, Hegseth, speaking to reporters in the Dominican Republic, said Trump directed that he deploy 500 additional National Guard troops to the nation’s capital.

“This will only stiffen our resolve to ensure that we make Washington, D.C., safe and beautiful. The drop in crime has been historic,” Hegseth said. “The increase in safety and security has been historic. But if criminals want to conduct things like this, violence against America’s best, we will never back down. President Trump will never back down. That’s why the American people elected him.”

As of Tuesday afternoon, 2,188 guard personnel were in Washington, D.C., including more than 920 D.C. guard troops and support from Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, West Virginia, Ohio, Louisiana and South Carolina.

The president initially deployed National Guard troops to the nation’s capital in August as part of a federal push to combat crime. At the time, Trump said it was “to help reestablish law, order, and public safety in Washington, D.C.”

“This is liberation day in D.C. and we’re going to take our capital back,” Trump said during a press conference in August.

Democratic lawmakers criticized the deployment and called it a “brazen power grab.”

Last week, a federal judge blocked the deployment of National Guard troops to Washington, D.C., but put that ruling on hold until Dec. 11, while the Trump administration files appeals.

Updated at 1:40 p.m. EST.

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FBI Director Kash Patel and DC Mayor Muriel Bowser have told a press conference that the two members of the National Guard who were shot in the US capital Washington are in critical condition but not dead, as West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey had initially stated.

"Please send your prayers to those brave warriors who are in critical condition and their families," Patel said.

Bowser said that she also was sending her "thoughts and prayers to the families of the guardsmen and to the guardsmen who are in critical condition in a local hospital."

Executive Assistant Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department Jeffery Carroll said that at about 2:15 pm (1915 GMT) "members of the DC National Guard were on a high visibility patrol... when a suspect came around the corner, raised his arm with a firearm and discharged at the National Guard members."

Carroll added that the suspect was subdued and arrested.

Earlier on Tuesday, just over an hour after the shooting, Morrisey said on social media that "both members of the West Virginia National Guard who were shot earlier today in Washington, DC have passed away from their injuries," before posting that he was receiving "conflicting reports" about the condition of the two members half an hour later.

"We are now receiving conflicting reports about the condition of our two Guard members and will provide additional updates once we receive more complete information," Morrisey said.