President Donald Trump has not dismissed the possibility of deporting the family of Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the 29-year-old Afghan refugee charged with the ambush murder of a National Guard soldier near the White House.
Speaking to reporters on Thanksgiving, Trump revealed his team is actively reviewing the option, stating, “Well, we’re looking at that right now,” when asked about expelling Lakanwal’s wife and five children from the U.S.
Lakanwal opened fire on two unarmed West Virginia National Guard members patrolling near the White House on Wednesday as part of “Operation DC Safe and Beautiful” to curb rising crime in the capital.
Sarah Beckstrom, a 20-year-old Army specialist shot in the head and chest, succumbed to her injuries on Thanksgiving night after emergency surgery.
Her fellow guardsman, 24-year-old Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, was also wounded but has survived and is recovering, though initial reports described his condition as critical.
A third guardsman intervened, shooting and wounding Lakanwal, who was hospitalized in serious condition before his arrest.
Federal authorities have upgraded charges against Lakanwal to first-degree murder, with U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro vowing to pursue the case aggressively.
Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed that prosecutors will seek the death penalty, emphasizing the “cowardly and barbaric” nature of the attack.
Lakanwal, who entered the U.S. in 2021 under Biden’s chaotic Operation Allies Welcome program after claiming to have assisted the CIA against the Taliban, resettled in Bellingham, Washington.
Trump announced Beckstrom’s death during a Thanksgiving call to military units, praising her as “an incredible person, outstanding in every single way.”
The FBI is investigating the motive, but officials have not yet classified it as terrorism, despite the suspect’s background and the targeted nature of the attack.
President Trump, on the other hand, wasted no time blasting the incident as a “terrorist attack” and pinning the blame squarely on Biden’s failed immigration policies.
In a late-night Thanksgiving post on Truth Social, Trump announced Beckstrom’s death and Wolfe’s critical status, vowing to “permanently pause migration from all Third World countries” like Afghanistan.
Trump additionally promised to end federal benefits for noncitizens, denaturalize threats, and deport those “non-compatible with Western Civilization.”
