Afghan national charged over attack on National Guard members in Washington

Two West Virginia National Guard members were shot and critically wounded in an ambush attack near the White House on Wednesday, with authorities charging an Afghan national who allegedly drove across the United States to carry out the assault.

US Attorney for the District of Columbia identified the victims as Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24, who remain in hospital in critical condition following the Wednesday afternoon shooting.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, was taken into custody and also suffered gunshot wounds that were not life-threatening. Authorities have not yet determined a motive.

Prosecutors said charges were pending and could be upgraded depending on the victims' condition.

FBI Director Kash Patel said investigators are treating the shooting as an act of terrorism and have launched what he called a "coast-to-coast investigation" involving multiple search warrants.

Victims just sworn in

The two guard members had been sworn in less than 24 hours before the attack occurred near the Farragut West metro station, approximately two blocks northwest of the White House.

According to authorities in Washington, video footage from the crime scene shows the assailant came around a corner and immediately opened fire on the troops.

Other National Guard members in the area responded to the gunfire and subdued the gunman after he was shot, Carroll said. At least one guard member returned fire, according to law enforcement officials. Authorities said they have no other suspects.

Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser characterised the incident as a targeted attack on the nation itself. "Somebody drove across the country and came to Washington DC to attack America," she said. "That person will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law."

The Trump administration ordered 500 additional National Guard members to Washington following the shooting.

'If they can't love our country, we don't want them'

CIA Director John Ratcliffe said in a statement that prior to arriving in the United States, the suspect worked with the US government, including the CIA, as part of a partner force in Kandahar. The relationship ended shortly after the Afghanistan evacuation, Ratcliffe said, without specifying the suspect's exact role.

Kandahar, located in southern Afghanistan's Taliban heartland, saw intense fighting between Taliban and NATO forces following the 2001 US-led invasion after the September 11 attacks. The CIA employed Afghan staff for translation, administrative work and front-line operations alongside paramilitary officers.

The suspect had been living in Bellingham in Washington state, some 150 kilometres north of Seattle.

US President Donald Trump released a video message Wednesday night saying the suspect entered the country from Afghanistan and calling for the reinvestigation of Afghan refugees. "If they can't love our country, we don't want them," Trump said, describing the shooting as "a crime against our entire nation."

The shooting occurred the day before Thanksgiving and comes amid ongoing disputes over the Trump administration's deployment of military forces to address what officials describe as rising crime.

Social media footage from the scene showed first responders performing CPR on one guard member and treating another on a pavement covered in broken glass.