Two National Guard soldiers were shot near the White House on Wednesday, just hours after they were sworn in, according to U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro.
The victims, identified as Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolf, 24, both from West Virginia, remain in critical condition following emergency surgery.
“Sarah and Andrew were sworn in less than 24 hours before they were shot on the streets of Washington,” Pirro told reporters during a press conference alongside FBI Director Kash Patel and Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser.
Pirro stated that the shooter, Rahmanullah Rakanwar, a 29-year-old Afghan national, carried out the incident in broad daylight as an “ambush-style” targeted attack.
Rakanwar entered the U.S. in September 2021 through the former President Biden’s Operation Welcoming Allies program after a complicated withdrawal from Afghanistan. It’s reported he traveled from Washington state to carry out the shooting.
Beckstrom, injured in the chest and head, had volunteered that day “to help others get home to their families,” said U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi.
“Now their families are fighting for their lives alongside them in hospital rooms,” she added somberly.
Pirro mentioned at the press conference that the victims were receiving “the best medical care.”
“Their families are there with them now,” she noted. “They’re critical. We all understand what that implies. The outcome is uncertain. But let’s be clear: if one of them does not survive, it will be classified as a murder case. Absolutely.”
She urged the public to pray for their survival and recovery.
“On days like today, when families gather around the Thanksgiving table in America, we pray. Please, please… pray for these two young men, that they will survive.”
Rakanwar, currently under investigation as a terrorist, was also injured during the attack and is being treated in a hospital under tight security.
