Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who served with the CIA, came to the United States under the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome. The program allowed Afghan nationals into the U.S., including those who had served with American forces.
A senior U.S. official told Fox News that the CIA would have done its own vetting of Lakanwal, including through the National Counterterrorism Center, to see if he had ties to terrorist groups. It’s unclear what the man’s motivations were, but he allegedly said “Allahu akbar” or “God is great” during the attack.
“In terms of vetting, nothing came up,” the senior U.S. official told Fox News. “He was clean on all checks.”
The official added that the government had been conducting continuous annual vetting since the Afghans’ arrival in the country. The FBI declined to comment on this story to the Washington Examiner, citing the ongoing investigation.
Lakanwal served in Afghanistan with NDS-03, one of a few paramilitary groups with the CIA. Afghan members of the units are highly vetted and trained by the CIA. His service allowed him to come to the country, and he settled in Washington state.
He reportedly drove from his home in Washington state to the nation’s capital, thousands of miles, to commit the attack. He allegedly shot National Guardsmen Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, near the Farragut West metro station in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. Both are still in critical condition.
The Trump administration has pinned the attack on the Biden administration’s lack of vetting of Lakanwal. U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro and FBI Director Kash Patel held a press conference on Thursday, criticizing the vetting process.
“This is what happens in this country when people are allowed in who are not properly vetted,” Pirro said.
TRUMP PINS DC NATIONAL GUARD SHOOTING ON BIDEN’S POST-AFGHANISTAN IMMIGRATION POLICY
President Donald Trump said extra National Guard troops will be deployed to the nation’s capital as a result of what he called a terror attack. His administration announced shortly after that they will conduct a sweeping review of green card holders from “countries of concern.”
The Washington Examiner also reached out to the White House, Department of Homeland Security, and CIA on the Afghan national’s vetting, but received no response.
