The shooting in Washington D.C. on Wednesday led to two National Guard members were shot and the gunman was also injured. While the guards were in hospital in a critical condition yesterday, one of them, Sarah Beckstrom, died on Thursday, President Donald Trump confirmed.
Announcing the tragic news, Trump said, “I must unfortunately tell you that just seconds before I went on, right now, I heard that Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the Guardsmen that we’re talking about, highly respected, young, magnificent person, started service in June 2023, outstanding in every way, she’s just passed away.”
He further added, “She’s no longer with us, she’s looking down at us right now. Her parents are with her. This just happened. She was savagely attacked. She’s dead, no longer with us. Incredible person, outstanding in every single way.”
Trump then went on to describe the shooting as a “terrorist attack”. The shooter was identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national who had worked with CIA-backed forces in Kandahar before coming to the U.S. as Fox News reported.
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While Trump did not want to miss this unfortunate opportunity to bash the Biden administration again for enabling the Afghans who worked with the US, this particular individual, Lakanwal was granted asylum in 2025, under Trump’s presidency.
Therefore, Attorney General Pam Bondi’s suggestion of going for the death penalty for Lakanwal for acts of terrorism is being skeptically looked at by officials since the asylum process involves extensive vetting. Talking about the same, ABC News contributor John Cohen, who had previously served as the head of intelligence for the Department of Homeland Security and a U.S. counterterrorism coordinator said, “[The suspect] would have been vetted against classified and unclassified holdings when he came here and as part of the asylum process.”
He further added, “He was actually granted asylum under the Trump administration … This does raise the question whether the administration is focusing enough on terrorism threats versus civil immigration enforcement.”
While Lakanwal’s fate now remains uncertain, another guard, 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe is still fighting for his life. Both Sarah and Andrew were sworn in less than 24 hours before the tragic incident and the former volunteered to work over the Thanksgiving holiday. Talking about the same, Pam Bondi told Fox News, “She volunteered, as did many of those guardsmen and women, so other people could be home with their families, yet now their families are in hospital rooms with them while they are fighting for their lives.”
Sarah Beckstrom has died as a result of the wounds inflicted by the Afghan national who shot her and her fellow Guardsman.
Rest in Peace Sarah Beckstrom 🙏❤️ pic.twitter.com/JDtDJ7pMJz
— Sumit (@SumitHansd) November 28, 2025
Sarah’s father, Gary Beckstrom was understandably devastated by the incident. He was with his daughter on Thanksgiving as she fought for her life and eventually gave up. Talking to The New York Times over the phone Gary said, “I’m holding her hand right now.”
Sarah’s ex-boyfriend, Adam Carr also had only good things to say about Sarah. Talking to CNN, he said, “She’d wake up in the mornings with me when I was going to work. She’d make me lunch before I left, because I never really wanted to and didn’t care, but she did. She’d be waiting for me whenever I came home, she’d be all excited waiting at the door to give me a hug when I walked in. No matter what I was doing, she was always next to my side.”
Sarah’s death makes the troop deployment situation in Washington DC even more complicated. While Trump has decided for 500 more guards to be deployed in the city, this sudden and unfortunate attack has naturally given rise to an atmosphere of tension and questions about the safety of the people involved in these operations.
