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Gone quiet · last update Dec 6, 2025 / National Guard of the United States

The shooting of two National Guard members near the White House

Overview · reviewed November 12, 2026

On November 26, 2025, a gunman shot two West Virginia members near the White House; Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, was wounded.[1][2][3] The suspect, a 29-year-old Afghan national who came to the US after the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan and had worked with the CIA there, was charged with first-degree murder.[4][3][5] The Trump administration responded by halting immigration requests from Afghans and tightening its immigration policies.[6][7]

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The suspect, a 29-year-old Afghan national who came to the US after the 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan and had worked with the CIA there, was charged with first-degree murder.[4][3][5] The Trump administration responded by halting immigration requests from Afghans and tightening its immigration policies.[6][7]

Coverage over time

Share of tracked outlets · weekly (UTC)

Week of 2025-11-24 (UTC): 53%, 81 of 153 tracked outlets (19 left, 39 center, 23 right)Week of 2025-12-01 (UTC): 18%, 31 of 177 tracked outlets (7 left, 20 center, 4 right)Week of 2025-12-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2025-12-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-01-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-02-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-16 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-23 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-03-30 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-04-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-04 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-11 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-18 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-05-25 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-01 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-08 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-15 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-22 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-06-29 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-06 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-13 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-20 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-07-27 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-03 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-10 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-17 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-24 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-08-31 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-07 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-14 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-21 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-09-28 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-05 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-12 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-19 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-10-26 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-02 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outletsWeek of 2026-11-09 (UTC): no coverage from tracked outlets, so far

LeftCenterRightLighter bar: this week so far

Each bar is the share of the outlets on our Left / Center / Right rating scale that we tracked publishing that week which carried reporting on this story, split by the outlets' ratings. We track more outlets now than in the archive, so a share keeps earlier and later weeks comparable. An outlet counts once a week however much it published, and outlets in one ownership or syndication group count as one on each side they appear on. A rating describes the outlet, not the report. A gap means no such reports were collected that week, not that nothing was reported anywhere. Weeks run Monday to Sunday in UTC, so a report published on a Sunday evening in US Eastern time counts in the next week. 6 more outlets off the scale (not rated, or outside the left-right graphs) also reported; they are not in this chart. See them.

Weekly counts, outlets and reports (2 weeks with coverage)
Outlets on the rating scale that carried this story each week, of the outlets tracked that week, newest first
Week of (UTC)LeftCenterRightOf trackedShareReceipts
Dec 1, 2025720431 of 17718%
Nov 24, 202519392381 of 15353%

Latest coverage

The newest reporting in this story's record.

  1. Dec 5, 2025 · first reported · Headline from NBC Chicago

    National Guard member who survived D.C. attack 'slowly healing,' West Virginia governor says

Background

The shooting came amid President Donald Trump's deployments of the Guard, followed in a related arc. A suspect was taken into custody after the shooting,[1] and authorities said he had driven from his home in Washington state.[2] Trump called him a "savage monster" and announced Beckstrom's death,[3] and US Attorney Jeanine Pirro upgraded the charges to first-degree murder.[5] Trump invited Beckstrom's family to the White House.[8]

US Citizenship and Immigration Services indefinitely halted processing of all immigration requests involving Afghan nationals,[6] and the White House launched an interagency investigation.[7]

In the days after the shooting, Trump criticized the program that had brought about 76,000 Afghans to the United States after the withdrawal and called for the government to re-examine Afghan immigrants who entered while Biden was president.[9][10] Reporting found that the suspect had been unraveling for years and could not hold down a job, as members of his community raised concerns.[11] In early December, Wolfe remained in serious condition but showed "positive" signs.[12]

Supporting stories (12)
  1. What we know about the 2 National Guard members shot near White House
  2. 2 National Guard members shot: Here’s what we know about them
  3. Trump says one of the two West Virginia National Guard members shot by Afghan national has died
  4. Who is Rahmanullah Lakanwal? Afghan national accused of shooting 2 National Guard in DC
  5. Suspect in shooting of National Guard members now facing a first-degree murder charge
  6. USCIS halts Afghan immigration processing after shooting of National Guard members in DC
  7. Trump vows immigration crackdown following DC shooting of National Guard members
  8. Trump issues White House invitation to families of two National Guard members who were shot
  9. Trump criticizes the program that brought Afghan refugees to the US who fought the Taliban
  10. Trump says US must re-examine Afghan immigrants who came when Biden was president
  11. Suspect in National Guard attack struggled with ‘dark isolation’ as community raised concerns
  12. Injured National Guard member remains in serious condition, but shows ‘positive’ signs

The full record

Each date is when an update was first reported.

All 16 recorded updates

December 2025

  1. National Guard member who survived D.C. attack 'slowly healing,' West Virginia governor saysHeadline from NBC Chicago · 8 outlets

November 2025

  1. Injured National Guard member remains in serious condition, but shows ‘positive’ signsHeadline from CNN · 9 outlets
  2. Trump issues White House invitation to families of two National Guard members who were shotHeadline from NBC News · 10 outlets
  3. National Guard Member Shot in DC Has Shown Positive Signs, Governor SaysHeadline from Military.com · 14 outlets
  4. Suspect in National Guard attack struggled with ‘dark isolation’ as community raised concernsHeadline from MyNorthwest · 12 outlets
  5. Suspect in shooting of National Guard members now facing a first-degree murder chargeHeadline from WFMZ Allentown · 24 outlets
  6. Trump says one of the two West Virginia National Guard members shot by Afghan national has diedHeadline from Philadelphia Inquirer · 9 outlets
  7. Trump says US must re-examine Afghan immigrants who came when Biden was presidentHeadline from Al-Monitor · 5 outlets
  8. 2 National Guard members shot: Here’s what we know about themHeadline from FOX 35 Orlando · 6 outlets
  9. National guard member Sarah Beckstrom has died after shooting in Washington DC, Trump announcesHeadline from The Guardian · 23 outlets
  10. Trump criticizes the program that brought Afghan refugees to the US who fought the TalibanHeadline from MyNorthwest · 7 outlets
  11. Afghan national identified as suspect in National Guardsmen shooting in DC. Here’s what we knowHeadline from Local News 8 · 46 outlets
  12. Who is Rahmanullah Lakanwal? Afghan national accused of shooting 2 National Guard in DCHeadline from FOX 13 Tampa · 14 outlets
  13. USCIS halts Afghan immigration processing after shooting of National Guard members in DCHeadline from Fox5 Atlanta · 3 outlets
  14. Trump vows immigration crackdown following DC shooting of National Guard membersHeadline from ABC 13 Houston · 2 outlets
  15. What we know about the 2 National Guard members shot near White HouseHeadline from ABC 13 Houston · 76 outlets

Coverage & sources

Read the reports, see how much was collected over time, or compare outlets by political leaning.

Coverage & sources →