Headline Roundup • December 2nd, 2025
DC National Guard Shooting Suspect Previously Worked With CIA, Struggled With Mental Health
Violence In America,Middle East,Afghanistan,CIA,Terrorism,National Guard,Washington DC,Biden Administration
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the suspect in the shooting of two National Guard troops in Washington, DC, previously worked with the CIA in Afghanistan and struggled with mental health issues.
The Details: The 29-year-old suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, worked with the CIA and US assets in Afghanistan after being extensively vetted. He was granted asylum by the Trump Administration, but Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem says he was "radicalized" in America. According to emails obtained by the Associated Press (Left bias), Lakanwal had reportedly been struggling with mental health issues that ultimately led to his cutting himself off from his family, taking abrupt road trips, and quitting his job. He has been charged with first-degree murder after killing one National Guard member and critically wounding another.
Key Quotes: "This animal would've never been here if not for Joe Biden's dangerous policies which allowed countless unvetted criminals to invade our country and harm the American people," said White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson. Greta Bakshi, a former CIA officer who worked in Afghanistan, said, "Vetting can help mitigate threats, but it doesn't eliminate threats."
For Context: Lakanwal served in a Zero Unit of the Afghan army, a force backed by the CIA, before arriving in the U.S. in 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome. The program was part of the Biden administration's effort to evacuate nearly 7,000 Afghans who had aided U.S. forces during the two-decade war there. Since the attack on the D.C. National Guard on Wednesday, the Trump administration has ordered a freeze on processing asylum applications.
How The Media Covered It: Sources across the political spectrum covered all the angles of the story, but there was some difference in how outlets framed it. NBC News (Lean left bias) reported that visa and employment issues led to mental health issues, and Fox News (Right bias) reported that it remains "unclear" whether Lakanwal's history with the CIA unit played a role in his behavior.
Written by the AllSides staff (of humans). Learn more. Suggest an improvement to this summary.
Featured Coverage of this Story
Provided by the Department of Justice
The Afghan man accused of shooting two National Guard members last week had been mentally declining for years, according to emails reviewed by The Associated Press that detailed long stretches of isolation, escalating instability and sudden cross-country trips that preceded the attack blocks from the White House.
The AP reported that 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal had drawn concern for months, with interviews and records showing him dropping out of work, slipping into long periods of silence and taking abrupt road trips ahead of the shooting.
One email cited by the AP...
U.S. authorities believe the Afghan immigrant accused of ambushing National Guard members in Washington, D.C., was not radicalized until after he came to the United States, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on Sunday.
Speaking on NBC's "Meet the Press" and ABC's "This Week," Noem said authorities think alleged shooter Rahmanullah Lakanwal was already living in Washington state when he became radicalized. Investigators are seeking more information from family members and others, Noem said.
Authorities identified Lakanwal, 29, as the suspect in a Wednesday shooting that took place just blocks...
Before Rahmanullah Lakanwal settled in a quiet part of Washington state, he was part of a secret unit of Afghans who operated under CIA direction and hunted down Taliban commanders in highly dangerous missions.
They "took malignant actors off the battlefield and saved American lives, period," said Andrew Sullivan, who served as an officer with the Army's 1st Division in Afghanistan and is now executive director of No One Left Behind, a nonprofit that helps resettle Afghans who worked for the U.S. military during the war.
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