WATCH: Trump says National Guard soldier died after being shot, blames Biden administration

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — One of two West Virginia National Guard members shot by an Afghan national near the White House has died, President Donald Trump said, calling the shooter who worked for the CIA in his native country a “savage monster.”

Watch Trump’s remarks in the player above.

As part of his Thanksgiving call with US troops, Trump said he had just learned of the death of Sergeant Sarah Beckstrom, 20, while Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, was “fighting for his life.”

“She just died,” Trump said. “She’s no longer with us. She’s looking at us now. Her parents are with her.”

The president described Beckstrom as “a wonderful person who excels in every way.”

Trump used the ad to say the shooting was a “terrorist attack” as he criticized the Biden administration for enabling Afghans who worked with US forces during the Afghanistan war to enter the United States. The president has deployed National Guard members in part to assist in his administration’s mass deportation efforts.

Trump indicated that the shooter was mentally unstable after the war and his departure from Afghanistan.

“He went crazy. I mean he went crazy,” the president said. “This happens a lot with these people.”

The shooter was working with US forces in Afghanistan

The suspect accused in the shooting is 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakkanwal. The suspect worked for a special CIA-backed Afghan army unit before emigrating from Afghanistan, according to two sources who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, and #AfghanEvac, a group that helps resettle Afghans who helped the United States during the two-decade war.

Jeanine Pirro, the US Attorney for the District of Columbia, declined to provide a motive for Wednesday afternoon’s brazen act of violence, which occurred just blocks from the White House. The presence of troops in the nation’s capital and other cities across the country has become a political flashpoint.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars in Webster Springs, where Beckstrom is affiliated, will hold three services on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings, according to a Facebook post from the Veterans Affairs Assistant of Webster County.

The suspect, Lakanwal, launched an ambush-style attack with a .357-caliber Smith & Wesson handgun, Pirro said. The suspect currently faces charges of assault with intent to murder while armed and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. Pirro said it was “too early to determine” the suspect’s motives.

Pirro said the charges could be upgraded, adding: “We’re praying that they survive and that the top charge is not first-degree murder. But make no mistake, if they don’t, it definitely will be.”

The rare shooting of National Guard members on US soil on Thanksgiving Eve comes amid legal battles and a broader public policy debate over the Trump administration’s use of the military to combat what officials have described as an out-of-control crime problem.

Trump issued an emergency order in August consolidating the local police force and sending in National Guard troops. The order expired after a month. But troops have remained in the city, where nearly 2,200 troops are currently deployed, according to the latest government update.

Guard members patrolled neighborhoods, train stations and other locations, participated in highway checkpoints and were assigned to collect trash and guard sporting events. The Trump administration quickly ordered 500 additional National Guard members to Washington after Wednesday’s shooting.

The suspect who was also in custody was shot and suffered injuries 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 the AP on condition of anonymity.

The shooting raises questions about the legacy of the Afghanistan war

A resident of Khost Province in eastern Afghanistan, who identified himself as Lakanwal’s cousin, said that Lakanwal was originally from the province, and that he and his brother were working in a special unit of the Afghan army known as “Zero Units” in the southern province of Kandahar. A former official from the unit, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the situation, said Lakanwal was a team leader and his brother was a platoon leader.

His cousin spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. He said Lakanwal started working as a security guard for the unit in 2012 and was later promoted to become a team leader and GPS specialist.

Kandahar is located in the Taliban stronghold in the country. It witnessed heavy fighting between the Taliban and NATO forces after the US-led invasion in 2001 following the al-Qaeda attacks on September 11. The CIA relied on Afghan staff to translate, administer, and fight on the front lines with its paramilitary officers in the war.

Zero units are paramilitary units operated by Afghans but supported by the CIA, and have also served in front-line combat with CIA paramilitary officers. Activists attributed the violations to the units. They played a key role in the chaotic US withdrawal from the country, providing security around Kabul International Airport as the Americans withdrew from the country.

Lakkanwal’s relationship with the US government “ended shortly after the chaotic evacuation” of US service members from Afghanistan, CIA Director John Ratcliffe said in a statement.

Lakhanwal, 29, entered the United States in 2021 through Operation Welcoming Allies, a Biden administration program that evacuated and resettled tens of thousands of Afghans after the U.S. withdrawal from the country, officials said. #AfghanEvac said in a statement that Lakhanwal applied for asylum during the Biden administration, but his asylum was approved under the Trump administration.

This initiative brought nearly 76,000 people to the United States, many of whom worked alongside American troops and diplomats as interpreters and translators. It has since faced intense scrutiny from Trump and others over allegations of loopholes in the vetting process, even as advocates say there has been widespread vetting and that the program has provided a lifeline to people at risk of Taliban retaliation.

Lakanwal lives in Bellingham, Washington, about 79 miles (127 kilometers) north of Seattle, with his wife and five children, said his former landlord, Christina Weidman.

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

USCIS Director Joseph Edlow said in a social media post on Thursday that Trump had directed a review of green cards for people from “concerning” countries.

Edlo did not mention the names of the countries. But in June, the administration banned travel to the United States by citizens of 12 countries, and restricted access from seven other countries, citing national security concerns. Green card holders and Afghans who worked for the U.S. government or its allies in Afghanistan are listed as exempt.

The attack is being investigated as an act of terrorism

FBI Director Kash Patel said the shooting was being investigated as an act of terrorism. Agents issued a series of search warrants, which Patel described as a “thorough investigation.”

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser, a Democrat, has previously questioned the effectiveness of using the National Guard to enforce city laws. Last week, a federal judge ordered the deployment there to end, but the judge also suspended her order for 21 days to allow the administration to withdraw troops or appeal.

On Thursday, Bowser interpreted the shooting as a direct attack on America itself, and not on Trump’s policies specifically.

“Someone drove across the country and came to Washington, D.C., to attack America,” Bowser said. “This person will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Associated Press journalists Sediqullah Alizai, Elena Bekatoros, Konstantin Torobin, Seung-Min Kim, Gary Fields, Safiya Riddle, Matt Brown, Mike Balsamo, Eric Tucker, Jesse Bedyne, Evan Vucci, Nathan Elgren, John Raby, Haley Golden, Michael R. Sisak and John Seewer contributed.