WASHINGTON D.C. – The Trump administration has vowed a sweeping review of immigrants and asylum seekers after two US National Guard members were shot and critically wounded in the nation’s capital on Wednesday, November 26. President Donald Trump immediately labeled the incident “an act of terror” and linked it directly to the immigration status of the suspect.

The attack occurred just blocks from the White House when a gunman ambushed two members of the West Virginia National Guard who were on patrol near the Farragut Metro station at approximately 2:15 p.m. local time (10:15 p.m. EAT). Jeffery Carroll, Assistant Chief of Washington D.C.’s Metropolitan Police, described the shooting as a “targeted attack” by what appeared to be a “lone gunman.” Both soldiers were transported to a hospital in critical condition. The suspect was also wounded and taken into custody at the scene.

Multiple law enforcement officials identified the suspect as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national. In a partisan statement, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed that the suspect entered the United States on September 8, 2021, under ‘Operation Allies Welcome,’ a Biden-era program designed to resettle Afghans who were at risk following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Political Firestorm and Policy Shift

In a video address on Wednesday evening, President Trump seized on the suspect’s background to justify a hardline shift on immigration. “This heinous assault was an act of evil and act of hatred and an act of terror,” Trump stated. He announced his administration would “reexamine every single alien who has entered our country from Afghanistan under (former President Joe) Biden.” The move signals a potential mass review of asylum and refugee cases granted during the previous administration.

In response to the attack, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that President Trump had ordered the deployment of an additional 500 National Guard troops to patrol Washington D.C. This decision is legally contentious, coming just a week after a federal judge ruled on November 20 that the ongoing, monthslong deployment of the National Guard in the city was likely illegal and an intrusion on local authority. That ruling was stayed for 21 days to allow for an appeal.

Global Implications for Refugee and Asylum Policy

While the attack is a domestic US security issue, the administration’s response carries significant global implications. A broad crackdown on asylum seekers and a review of established refugee protocols in the United States could influence international standards and funding for refugee programs worldwide. Kenya, which hosts hundreds of thousands of refugees in camps like Dadaab and Kakuma and serves as a major hub for resettlement to the US, is particularly sensitive to such policy shifts.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), thousands of refugees are resettled from Kenya to the US annually. Recent directives from the Trump administration have already paused green card processing for refugees who arrived during the Biden years, creating uncertainty for many, including some who lived in Kenya. Humanitarian organizations like the International Rescue Committee have criticized these moves, stating that refugees already undergo the most intensive vetting of any group entering the US and that re-interviewing them would be a waste of resources and needlessly retraumatizing.

The Operation Allies Welcome program, under which the suspect entered, involved biometric and biographic screening by multiple US intelligence and law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and Department of Homeland Security. However, Secretary Noem’s statement described the program as admitting “unvetted, mass paroled” individuals, a claim that sets the stage for a broader reassessment of all such humanitarian parole programs. For context, the 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan, which precipitated the evacuation program, was a condition of a peace deal the Trump administration signed with the Taliban in 2020.

The investigation into the shooting is ongoing, with federal and local agencies working to determine a motive. The incident, occurring just a day before the American Thanksgiving holiday, has intensified the already fierce debate in the U.S. over immigration, national security, and the use of military personnel for domestic law enforcement.