WASHINGTON D.C. – An Afghan national who entered the United States under a special resettlement program has been identified as the suspect in the shooting of two National Guard members just blocks from the White House on Wednesday, November 26, 2025. The incident, which left both soldiers in critical condition, has been labeled an “act of terror” by President Donald Trump and has immediately intensified the contentious debate over U.S. immigration and asylum policies.

The attack occurred at approximately 2:15 p.m. local time (10:15 p.m. EAT) near the Farragut West Metro station, a busy area close to the White House. Law enforcement officials described it as a targeted, ambush-style attack. The suspect allegedly rounded a corner and began firing at the two West Virginia National Guard members before being shot and subdued by other troops and law enforcement. The suspect's injuries are not considered life-threatening. Both wounded soldiers were transported to local hospitals and remain in critical condition, according to FBI Director Kash Patel.

Multiple law enforcement sources have identified the suspect as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Lakanwal entered the U.S. in September 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome. This program was initiated by the previous Biden administration to resettle vulnerable Afghans, such as interpreters and others who assisted U.S. forces, following the American withdrawal from Afghanistan. Officials stated that all individuals under this program undergo multi-agency biometric and biographic screening by intelligence, law enforcement, and counterterrorism professionals before they are cleared to travel to the U.S. Lakanwal was reportedly resettled in Washington state and authorities are investigating his background and a possible motive.

The political repercussions were immediate and severe. Speaking from Florida, President Trump condemned the attacker as an “animal” and vowed he would pay a “very steep price.” In a video address, he declared the shooting an “act of terror” and directly linked it to the policies of his predecessor. “We must now reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under Biden,” Trump stated, ordering an indefinite pause on the processing of all immigration applications from Afghan nationals. In response to the attack, the Trump administration also ordered 500 additional National Guard troops to be deployed to Washington D.C.

A Familiar Dilemma for Kenya

While the incident is geographically distant, the underlying tensions resonate deeply with Kenya's own complex experience with refugee policy and national security. For decades, Kenya has hosted one of the largest refugee populations in the world, primarily from Somalia and South Sudan, in camps like Dadaab and Kakuma. This generosity has been persistently challenged by a critical dilemma: how to uphold humanitarian obligations while safeguarding against security threats.

The U.S. debate over the vetting of Afghan evacuees mirrors concerns repeatedly raised by the Kenyan government regarding the potential for militants, particularly from the Somalia-based Al-Shabaab group, to infiltrate refugee populations. Kenyan authorities have often linked terror attacks, including the 2013 Westgate Mall siege and the 2015 Garissa University attack, to operatives who allegedly used the sprawling Dadaab camp as a base for planning, recruitment, and logistics. These security concerns have led to drastic policy proposals, including repeated threats by the government to close the Dadaab camp entirely.

The process of verifying asylum seekers in the U.S., as highlighted by the Lakanwal case, is analogous to the Refugee Status Determination (RSD) process in Kenya. In Kenya, this is managed by the Department of Refugee Services (DRS), which is responsible for registering and vetting all asylum seekers. However, the system faces a significant backlog, with over 168,000 asylum-seekers awaiting status determination as of January 2024, according to UNHCR. This strain on resources complicates efforts to conduct thorough, individualised security screening, a challenge that is now at the forefront of the American political discourse.

The shooting in Washington D.C. serves as a stark illustration of how a single security incident involving a refugee or asylum seeker can be politicized, potentially leading to sweeping policy changes that affect thousands of vulnerable people. It underscores the immense pressure on host nations—whether the United States or Kenya—to maintain robust, credible, and efficient vetting systems. For Kenyans, this event is a powerful reminder of the delicate and often precarious balance between compassion and security that continues to define the nation's refugee policy.