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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) under the former President Joe Biden promised to “quickly and safely” relocate Afghan allies to the United States, but multiple sources have confirmed that the D.C. National Guard shooter came under the same Biden-era program in 2021.
Biden responded to the “targeted” attack in DC shortly before news broke of how the suspected shooter, 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, entered the United States under humanitarian parole as part of Operation Allies Welcome. according to DHS and FBI sources, giving him permission to be in the country legally.
In 2021, in the midst of the Afghan withdrawal debacle, Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas promised this “Fast and safe” Relocated thousands of Afghan allies to the United States and confirmed that DHS had denied evacuees entry to the United States because they received “derogatory” information during the vetting process.
After the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, which was followed by the Taliban takeover of the country, the Biden administration launched a major operation to support and relocate vulnerable Afghans, including those who had helped U.S. troops in the past.
Two National Guard members shot near White House, Afghan state suspect in custody: ‘targeted’
Due to the haste of the evacuation as well as general concerns about immigration and parole policies, Fears arose who the country may have let in.
Mayorkas said during a press conference in September 2021 that 120,000 people had been evacuated from Afghanistan since the US withdrawal began just months earlier. The Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center noted that in August 2021, nearly 800 aircraft evacuated thousands of people in just 17 days.
A defining image of Afghans running after an American military plane leaving Kabul as US troops make a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.
At the time, Mayorkas pointed to the rigorous biometric screening and verification process that exists both in the U.S. and in transit countries to ensure that every person entering the country is properly vetted.
In response to a question from Fox News’ Jake Gibson at the time, Mayorkas confirmed that people with “derogatory information” had already been flagged during the vetting process, but did not specify the number of people flagged.
Mayorkas assured that 400 employees from US Customs and Border Patrol and the Transportation Security Administration would be called in to assist. Part of the effort included transporting refugees from military bases designated by the Pentagon to house and screen refugees before they enter the United States.
DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas shows this division to the members of the Taliban. (Haroon Sabawoon/Anadolu via Getty Images and Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
According to sources, Lakanwal, who entered the US in September 2021 following the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, was granted permission to remain in the US as part of Operation Allies Welcome. Authorities are investigating the shooting as a possible act of international terrorism.
FBI officials confirmed that two West Virginia National Guard soldiers remain in critical condition after they were shot in the head in an apparent targeted attack just blocks from the White House.
During comments on Wednesday evening, President Donald Trump called Biden “a disastrous president” and “the worst in our country’s history.”
He also mocked the former president for flying Lakanwal “on those infamous flights that everyone was talking about.”
“Nobody knew who was coming in, nobody knew anything about it,” Trump said, referring to the Afghan evacuation process under Biden.
He also criticized broader parole and immigration policies under Biden, claiming Lakanwal’s “status was extended by legislation signed under President Biden.”
“This attack underscores our nation’s greatest national security threat,” Trump added, announcing that the government “must now reinvestigate every single alien who entered our country under Biden.”
Trump also appeared to suggest the death penalty for Lakanwal, declaring near the end of his address: “We will bring the perpetrator of this barbaric attack to justice quickly and safely – if the bullet goes the other way – (inaudible).”
National Guard soldiers stand behind crime scene tape on a corner in downtown Washington, Nov. 26, 2025. Two National Guard soldiers were shot a few blocks from the White House, according to law enforcement. (Drew Angerer/AFP via Getty Images)
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Meanwhile, while former President Biden responded to the tragic attack in D.C., his comments came before news of how the shooter came to the United States.
“Jill and I are heartbroken that two National Guard members were shot outside the White House,” Biden posted on
“Violence of any kind is unacceptable and we must all stand united against it. We pray for the service members and their families.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on the news that Lakanwal entered the United States under the Biden-era program, but did not receive a response. Attempts to reach former DHS Secretary Mayorkas in time for publication also failed.
Fox News’ Brooke Singman and Kelly Laco contributed to this report.