Afghans in US issue plea to Trump after ‘tragic’ Washington DC shooting

Afghans living in the United States condemned Wednesday's “deeply tragic” deadly gun attack in Washington, D.C., while emphasizing that the suspect, who moved to the United States from Afghanistan four years ago, does not represent them.

The alleged perpetrator, 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, entered America under a program that offered special immigration protection to Afghans working with the United States after its troops withdraw from Afghanistan in 2021.

National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, was killed in Wednesday's shooting, while her colleague, Andrew Wolf, 24, is reportedly fighting for his life.

In response, US President Donald Trump has suspended all immigration requests from Afghans, ordered a review of green cards issued to people from 19 countries and threatened a broader crackdown on migrants from what he calls “Third World countries.”

The US Afghan Community Coalition expressed sympathy for the victims' families, calling for a “full investigation” but calling on the US government not to delay or suspend immigration applications to Afghanistan.

“Twenty years of Afghan-American partnership cannot be forgotten,” the coalition said in a statement, referring to the two-decade U.S. effort in 2001 to overthrow the Taliban rulers in Afghanistan and bring security to the country.

Afghans living in America told the BBC they were horrified by the attack in Washington DC, which they stressed was the act of just one man.

Some spoke anonymously for fear of reprisals from the Taliban, which has regained control of Afghanistan following the withdrawal of U.S. troops in 2021.

One Afghan who took the step following the US withdrawal called Wednesday's incident “deeply tragic.” He noted the timing ahead of Thanksgiving and amid “an extremely tense political environment in Washington.”

However, he stressed that the shooting was an “individual criminal offense and not representative of society.”

“Afghans in the United States are hard-working, tax-paying members of society,” he added. “They remain grateful for America's evacuation efforts during the crisis in Kabul.”

Thousands of Afghans tried to flee the country in 2021, many through Kabul, as the US withdrew its troops and the Taliban invaded.

US officials say the suspect, Mr Lakanwal, had dealings with US troops in Afghanistan while they were there. He helped guard American troops at Kabul airport during the withdrawal, a former military commander who served with him told the BBC.

That same year he came to the USA. He applied for asylum in 2024 and his claim was granted earlier this year, the official told BBC partner CBS News.

Another Afghan, who also moved to the United States after troops pulled out of Afghanistan four years ago, called Wednesday's shooting “really shocking.” He said he was praying for the families of the victims.

He suspected it was an “individual crime committed without any support, participation or cooperation from others” and said the attack “should not be seen as an attack on the entire community.”

Another Afghan living in the US who spoke to the BBC said the shooting was a “very devastating event for all immigrants”, adding that the political reaction had left many people in a state of uncertainty.

The situation was made even more acute by threats in his country of origin, he said: “For us Afghans, there are problems both in Afghanistan and here.”

Crystal Bayat, an Afghan human rights activist who moved to the U.S. after 2021, said that despite gaining permanent residency, she still fears the U.S. government could abruptly change course on accepting Afghan migrants.

“Every day I’m afraid: What if the policy changes and we get deported from here?” Ms Bayat spoke to the BBC World Service's Outside Source programme.

“I hope President Trump will change his mind on this,” Ms. Bayat said. “It is very dangerous to punish entire immigrant communities or people who stood shoulder to shoulder with the (American) people.”

She said there are families who are still at risk in Afghanistan because of their U.S. support before the troop withdrawal.