00:00Washington DC faces a moment of extraordinary tension.
00:08Less than a mile from the White House, in broad daylight,
00:12two National Guard soldiers were ambushed outside a busy subway station on Thanksgiving Eve,
00:18an attack that officials say carried the hallmarks of a targeted assault.
00:23In the hours since, the federal government has surged additional forces into the nation's capital.
00:29President Trump has now requested another 500 National Guard troops,
00:34joining the more than 2,000 already mobilized throughout the district.
00:39Federal officials call the situation fluid and rapidly escalating.
00:47The shooting unfolded just after midday.
00:50Commuters leaving the station ducked for cover as gunfire erupted.
00:55According to Washington Metropolitan Police,
00:58the two West Virginia National Guard soldiers were assigned to a high-visibility patrol outside the station,
01:05part of the broader Trump-ordered deployment,
01:08to address what the administration called rising crime in the nation's capital.
01:13Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser, long at odds with the White House over militarized policing in her city,
01:20did not mince words. She said, this is a targeted shooting.
01:25Two of our brave members of the National Guard and Department of War were brazenly attacked in a horrendous act of violence.
01:31They were shot. They're in critical condition.
01:34As you can see behind me, we have assembled the full force of both the federal and state and local law enforcement agencies
01:40to bring bare all of our resources to make sure we find the perpetrators responsible for this heinous act.
01:47And make no mistake, they will be brought to justice.
01:49The suspect reportedly came around a corner, drew his weapon and opened fire immediately.
01:56In the chaotic seconds that followed, other National Guard troops returned fire and subdued the gunman.
02:02The two wounded soldiers were rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
02:08As shots echoed through the commercial district, the Secret Service placed the White House under immediate lockdown,
02:15a precaution that underscored the gravity of the attack.
02:19Late Wednesday, officials identified the attacker as Raffin Mullah Lackenwall, an Afghan national.
02:30The Department of Homeland Security confirmed he entered the United States in 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome,
02:38a program launched during the Biden administration to resettle Afghans who assisted U.S. forces during the war.
02:45A relative speaking to NBC News said Lackenwall served for nearly a decade in the Afghan army,
02:52at times fighting alongside U.S. special forces.
02:56More recently, they said, he worked at an Amazon warehouse in Washington state.
03:02Investigators with the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force are now leading the probe, searching for answers to what they describe as a premeditated lone actor ambush.
03:15Within hours, the shooting had already become a flashpoint in the national debate over immigration, federal power and public safety.
03:25Vice President J.D. Vance, travelling in Kentucky, posted on X that the attack validated the administration's stance on immigration enforcement, writing,
03:35We must redouble our efforts to deport people with no right to be in our country.
03:44Critics quickly pushed back.
03:46Civil rights organizations argue the administration has implemented illegal and excessively harsh tactics, claiming that recent sweeps have detained immigrants indiscriminately,
03:56including some here legally and others with no criminal record.
04:01President Trump himself issued a video statement late Wednesday calling the shooting an act of evil, an act of hatred and an act of terror.
04:11In the history of our nation's capital, the D.C. safe and beautiful task force, which has achieved an unprecedented reduction in violent crime and crimes of all type.
04:24This heinous assault was an act of evil, an act of hatred and an act of terror.
04:30It was a crime against our entire nation. It was a crime against humanity.
04:35He announced that the administration would re-examine all Afghans who entered the U.S. during Biden's presidency.
04:44Hours later, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services confirmed it had temporarily halted all immigration processing for Afghan nationals, pending a review of security and vetting protocols.
04:57The attack comes at a pivotal moment for the administration's controversial use of the National Guard.
05:08Just five days ago, a federal judge issued a temporary ruling blocking Guard troops from engaging in law enforcement activities in D.C. without the mayor's approval.
05:19But paused enforcement until December to allow the Trump administration to appeal.
05:29The president has also deployed Guard forces to other major cities, Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland and Memphis.
05:38Moves strongly condemned by local leaders who accuse the administration of staging militarized displays of authority to punish political opponents.
05:47In Washington, resistance from the city's leadership has remained fierce.
05:53Yet, after Wednesday's ambush, the administration's push for expanded federal security has intensified.
06:00Tonight, the arrival of hundreds more troops signals a dramatic escalation in the government's response.
06:06At this hour, both wounded soldiers remain in critical condition.
06:15The suspect is hospitalized under armed guard.
06:19FBI investigators are still mapping the shooter's path, digital footprint and possible motives, leaving many questions unanswered.
06:27The city is locked into a tightened security posture.
06:32Patrols have doubled.
06:34Perimeters around federal buildings have expanded, and the atmosphere in the capital is tense, uncertain and bracing for further developments.
06:44Officials emphasize there is no evidence of additional suspects or an ongoing threat.
06:49But acknowledge this is a moment of heightened alert, with new policies and new troop deployments moving rapidly.
06:59In a city defined by politics, power and spectacle, this was something else.
07:06An attack that pierced directly into the heart of the nation's security apparatus.
07:11And as the investigation deepens the stakes, political and national continue to rise.
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