FBI investigating Washington shooting as potential act of international terrorism

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is looking at Wednesday’s shooting in Washington DC as a potential act of international terrorism, ABC News reported, citing sources.

According to them, authorities are trying to determine whether the incident in which two National Guard members were shot near the White House in the nation’s capital on Wednesday afternoon may have been inspired by an international terrorist organization.

The two National Guard members and the gunman were hospitalized with wounds. US President Donald Trump, who is currently in Florida, said the Guardsmen were in critical condition. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey initially said both members of his state’s National Guard had died from their injuries but added later that their status will need to be confirmed. At a news conference, FBI Director Kash Patel said that the wounded Guardsmen were alive at a hospital.

The attacker has been identified as an Afghan national, 29, who has been residing in the United States since 2021, CBS News reported, citing sources.

Meanwhile, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has stopped processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals indefinitely.

Trump said earlier that everyone who has entered the country from Afghanistan under his predecessor Joe Biden must be re-vetted.