Just steps from the White House, a horrific attack on the eve of Thanksgiving 2025 left one National Guard member dead and another clinging to life, allegedly at the hands of a former CIA-backed Afghan fighter.
According to Just the News, this tragic incident involves Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national and ex-member of the CIA-supported Afghan Zero Unit forces, charged with the shooting of two West Virginia National Guard members, resulting in the death of Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and critically injuring U.S. Air Force Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24.
Let’s rewind to understand how we got here. Lakanwal’s story begins in Kandahar province, where he served with the elite Zero Unit forces, specifically the Kandahar Strike Force under the National Strike Unit (NSU), tied to Afghanistan’s former National Directorate of Security (NDS). These units, advised by the CIA since at least 2009, operated out of secretive bases like Firebase Gecko.
Unpacking the CIA’s Afghan Partnership History
By 2011, Lakanwal was working with the CIA, passing initial vetting that showed no terrorist ties. Fast forward to January 2021, when the Biden administration took office, and the CIA handed over a year’s budget to the NDS, announcing it would cease funding for Zero Units. A questionable move, leaving allies in limbo just as the U.S. planned its full withdrawal.
Then came the chaotic Taliban takeover in August 2021, following Biden’s April directive to pull all U.S. troops from Afghanistan. The CIA struck a deal with thousands of Zero Unit fighters, including Lakanwal, to secure Hamid Karzai International Airport (HKIA) during the non-combatant evacuation operation. In return, they and their families—totaling up to 38,800 people—were airlifted to safety. Lakanwal played a key role in securing HKIA’s perimeter amid the chaos, alongside roughly 1,200 NSU personnel deployed to restore order after the airport was overrun. These fighters were deemed essential, with a third of aircraft seats allocated to them during the evacuation. Yet, one wonders if prioritizing their exit over others was a misstep in an already botched withdrawal.
Evacuation Deals and Resettlement Challenges
After brief stops in Qatar, the UAE, and U.S. bases like Ramstein in Germany, Lakanwal arrived in the U.S. on Sept. 8, 2021, under Operation Allies Welcome, a resettlement program launched by the Biden administration. He settled in the Bellingham area of Washington State, was granted humanitarian parole, later asylum in April 2025, and had a Special Immigrant Visa application pending. Was the vetting thorough enough for someone with such a complex military background?
Speaking of vetting, Joe Kent, Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, didn’t mince words on the glaring oversight. “It is true that the terrorist who conducted the attack in D.C. was ‘vetted’ by the intelligence community. However, he was only vetted to serve as a soldier to fight against the Taliban, AQ, & ISIS in Afghanistan; he was NOT vetted for his suitability to come to America and live among us as a neighbor,” Kent stated.
Kent’s critique cuts deeper, exposing a policy flaw. “During Biden’s disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, his administration negligently used the vetting standard described above as the standard for being brought directly into the U.S., foregoing previous vetting standards applied to Special Immigrant Visas and any common sense vetting or concern for Americans,” he added. This isn’t just bureaucracy—it’s a failure to prioritize American safety over hasty political optics.
Tragic Consequences of Policy Missteps
Between 10,000 and 12,000 Zero Unit members were evacuated, a number that ballooned when families were included, straining the evacuation timeline set for Aug. 31, 2021. Brigadier General Farrell Sullivan noted the risk of not evacuating them, warning they could have turned against U.S. forces if left behind. But did this fear justify rushing thousands into the U.S. without stricter scrutiny?
Reports from groups like Human Rights Watch have long flagged allegations of human rights abuses by Zero Units, casting doubt on their heroic narrative. The CIA has pushed back, claiming to take such accusations seriously while dismissing them as Taliban propaganda. Still, these lingering concerns make one question whether all evacuees were truly the allies we were told they were.
Fast forward to the present, and Lakanwal stands accused of first-degree murder for the attack near the White House. He’s been arrested, initially pleaded not guilty to assault charges, and remains uncooperative with law enforcement. The weight of this tragedy—losing Specialist Beckstrom and seeing Staff Sergeant Wolfe fight for his life—demands answers.
National Security and Vetting Failures Exposed
President Trump called it “a monstrous, ambush-style attack just steps away from the White House,” and it’s hard to disagree with the outrage. When a former ally, brought here under the guise of gratitude, allegedly turns a weapon on our own, it’s not just a crime—it’s a betrayal of trust. How many more risks are we carrying from decisions made in haste?
The Biden administration’s handling of the Afghanistan withdrawal and subsequent resettlement programs like Operation Allies Welcome now face intense scrutiny. Over 85,000 Afghans were brought to the U.S. in a rush, many with backgrounds similar to Lakanwal’s, under vetting standards that Kent himself admits were inadequate for domestic integration. This isn’t about rejecting allies—it’s about ensuring policies don’t endanger the very citizens they’re meant to protect.
The heartbreak of this incident, compounded by the murky history of Zero Units and rushed evacuation deals, leaves a bitter taste. National security isn’t a partisan issue; it’s a promise to every American family that their safety comes first. Let’s hope this tragedy sparks a long-overdue reckoning on how we balance gratitude to foreign partners with vigilance at home.
