Devastated dad of National Guard soldier, 20, shot in DC ‘terror attack’ says she will not survive
The devastated father of one of the National Guard members shot and killed in a suspected terrorist attack has revealed he will not survive his injuries.
Sarah Beckstrom’s father, Gary Beckstrom, gave a heartbreaking update on Thursday, just one day after his daughter was shot in Washington, D.C.
“He has a fatal wound, there is no way he can heal,” he told the New York Times, speaking from his bedside. ‘I’m holding her hand right now.’
Beckstrom was ‘ambushed’ with his friend Andrew Wolfe (24), a member of the West Virginia National Guard, whose condition was stated to be critical.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan suspect injured in the clash, is currently detained in hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Lakanwal allegedly shot National Guard soldiers just a half-mile from the White House on Wednesday.
Authorities said the suspect was driving across the country from his home in Bellingham, Washington state, where he lived near the Canadian border with his wife and five children.
The soldiers were shot with a .357 Smith and Wesson pistol.
Sarah Beckstrom’s father, Gary Beckstrom, said his daughter will not survive the injuries she suffered when she was shot while on duty in Washington, D.C.
The fingerprints matched Lakanwal, who fled to the United States after the Taliban took over Afghanistan in 2021.
In his address to the nation last night, Donald Trump blamed Joe Biden and called for the investigation of ‘every alien from Afghanistan who enters our country’.
‘The suspect in custody is a foreigner who entered our country from Afghanistan, the hell on earth.
It was announced that the armed attacker who was detained during the conflict was 29-year-old Afghan soldier Rahmanullah Lakanwal.
‘He was flown by the Biden administration in September 2021 on those infamous flights that everyone is talking about. Nobody knew who was coming.
‘His status was expanded under legislation signed by President Biden, a disastrous president, the worst president in our history.’
CIA director John Ratcliffe revealed that Lakanwal had direct ties to the intelligence agency through his work with US Special Forces in Afghanistan, where he served as an elite commander.
Lakanwal, 29, applied for asylum in 2024 and was approved by Trump’s Department of Homeland Security in April this year, CNN reported.
Lakanwal’s ID card identifies him as a commander in Unit 01, an elite force within the former Afghan government’s National Security Directorate, according to The Telegraph.
Beckstrom ‘ambushed’ with West Virginia National Guard member Andrew Wolfe
Two National Guard soldiers were shot in front of the White House on Wednesday.
Andrew Wolfe was shot alongside Beckstrom in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
The Daily Mail has reached out to DHS for comment.
The cause of the shooting was not disclosed by law enforcement, but the FBI, led by Director Kash Patel, is investigating whether the attack was linked to international terrorism.
US Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s notes during Thursday’s briefing stated that the suspected attacker shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’ before the attack.
Beckstrom and Wolfe were in the nation’s capital as part of the president’s crime-fighting mission, which included taking over the local police department.
Approximately 2,200 Guard members were deployed to D.C. as part of the move.
Following the shooting, the president’s administration quickly ordered 500 more National Guard members into the city.
Lakanwal currently faces charges of assault with intent to kill while armed and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Thursday it was too early to tell what the suspect’s motive was.
He added: ‘We pray that they survive and that the top charge is not first-degree murder.
‘But make no mistake, if they don’t, that will certainly be the charge.’
