On November 26th, two national guard members who were deployed to D.C. in Mid-August under the Trump Administration to tackle crime became the brutal victims of gun violence. The two soldiers were patrolling near a metro station just 2 blocks away from the White House. When suddenly a gunman opened fire on both of them swiftly striking both of them in the head. Promptly after the shots were fired, a 29 year old Afghan refugee was apprehended by fellow guard members, secret service, and as well as law enforcement.
The gunman worked in the Zero Units that operated under the National Directorate of Security (NDS) in Islamic Republic of Afghanistan that was also backed by the CIA. The Unit was nicknamed “Death Squads” by many human rights groups. The units were infamous for doing ruthless night time raids targeted towards insurgents and high value targets of terrorist organizations like ISIS and the Taliban.
Under Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) in 2021, 76,000 evacuated Afghans were granted humanitarian parole, one of them being the gunman. On the day of the attack the DHS came out with a statement claiming, “one of thousands of unvetted Afghan nationals let into the country under the Biden administration.” As well as a 2022 audit from OIG “showed that some of the information from vetting evacuees was inaccurate”. After a later audit from the OIG they commended that “each of the responsible elements of the FBI effectively communicated and addressed any potential national security risk.
Ultimately, this incident was not only another crime in D.C. but a reminder of how dangerous public service can truly be. The two National Guard members volunteered to stay and work over the Thanksgiving holiday so other members of their unit got to go spend time with their families. This case also flagged huge concerns about safety and background checks, and how our government handles security while in times of crisis. As this investigation continues down the line hopefully it will lead to safer and better protections for those who serve our country.
