Two members of the United States National Guard are in critical condition after being shot in Washington DC, just a few blocks away from the White House in Washington, DC.
Videos shared on social media showed emergency workers giving CPR to one soldier and treating another on a footpath covered with broken glass.
Witnesses said they heard two gunshots and saw people running. One woman who had just come out of the metro station took shelter in a café and later saw a soldier being taken away on a stretcher with his head bleeding.
A 29-year-old Afghan national, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, has been identified as the suspected gunman.
Rahmanullah is a migrant from Afghanistan who came to the US during the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal, according to US media reports.
Lakanwal waited before he rounded the corner near the Farragut West Metro Station in Northwest DC around 2:15 pm (local time) and opened fire, striking a female guard in the chest before shooting her in the head, The New York Post reported, quoting law enforcement sources.
According to the report, Lakanwal entered America under Operation Allies Welcome and was resettled in Bellingham, Washington.
Meanwhile, United States President Donald Trump has called the Washington, DC, shooting an act of terror and a crime against humanity.
Briefing the media, Trump blamed former President Joe Biden for the shooting, saying the suspect came from Afghanistan on a 2021 airlift and called the country a "hellhole".
"This was a heinous assault and an act of evil, an act of hatred and an act of terror. It was a crime against our entire nation. It was a crime against humanity," he said.
He said that the Department of Homeland Security "is confident" that the suspect came to the US from Afghanistan.
"I can report tonight that based on the best available information, the Department of Homeland Security is confident that the suspect in custody is a foreigner who entered our country from Afghanistan, a hell hole on earth."
After the incident, the Trump administration ordered 500 additional National Guard members to be sent to Washington. Around 2,200 troops were already deployed in the city.
More than 300 West Virginia Guard members were sent to Washington in August, and around 160 recently extended their deployment until the end of the year. Police and fire vehicles surrounded the area after the shooting, and helicopters were seen overhead. Secret Service and federal agents from other departments also reached the spot.
Vice President JD Vance asked people to pray for the injured soldiers and said it was still not clear why the attack happened.
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