Shocking DC ambush triggers national soul-searching as officials probe radicalization tied to Pakistani extremists.
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem revealed Sunday that Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the Afghan immigrant accused of murdering a National Guard soldier in Washington, may have been radicalized inside the United States by an extremist Pakistani group, AFP reported — deepening alarm over vulnerabilities created during the Biden administration’s chaotic Afghan airlift.
Lakanwal, 29, is charged with first-degree murder for the November 26 ambush that killed 20-year-old Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom and critically wounded another soldier. The attack occurred mere blocks from the White House, sending shockwaves across the country on the eve of Thanksgiving.
Noem stated on NBC’s Meet the Press:
“We believe he was radicalized since he’s been here in this country.”
On ABC’s This Week, she added that investigators are looking closely at radical influences within his American community and ties that may trace back to Pakistani extremist circles, long known for exporting jihadist ideology worldwide — including against Israel and the West.
Lakanwal arrived in the United States in 2021 amid the Biden administration’s rushed evacuation from Afghanistan. He later settled in Washington state and allegedly drove across the country to carry out the attack near the White House.
Officials from President Trump’s administration — which approved Lakanwal’s asylum in April 2025 — say Biden’s airlift created an enormous vetting breach. Noem said Lakanwal was “maybe vetted, but not done well,” underscoring fears that extremist infiltration may have occurred during the mass relocation.
Within hours of the shooting, President Donald Trump delivered a searing national address, calling the attack “an act of terror, evil, and hatred.”
Trump warned that the incident illustrates a grave national security crisis:
“The last administration let in 20 million unknown and unvetted foreigners from all over the world… No country can tolerate such a risk to our very survival.”
Trump vowed sweeping action, calling for a full reassessment of all Afghans admitted under Biden and the removal of any foreign national who poses a threat or lacks loyalty to the United States:
“If they can’t love our country, we don’t want them.”
The attack has renewed public concern that radical networks — including Pakistani extremist groups long involved in anti-Israel and anti-Western operations — may exploit U.S. immigration loopholes. Security analysts note striking parallels to how such networks infiltrate Europe and attempt to weaponize refugee pathways.
For many Americans, the attack underscores what Israelis have long warned about: radicalization does not stop at borders, and failure to screen ideological threats can have deadly consequences.
