WASHINGTON — The man accused of shooting two National Guardsmen, killing one, made a virtual appearance in D.C. Superior Court on Tuesday to face a charge of first-degree murder.

Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who was also shot, could be seen on a video feed laying down in a hospital bed. Officials allege that Lakanwal gunned down Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, last week while they were on patrol near the White House as part of the their deployment to the nation’s capital.

Lakanwal, 29, is also charged with assault with intent to kill while armed; possession of a firearm; and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence in addition to murder.

He pleaded not guilty to all counts. A judged ordered Lakanwal held without bond.

Court documents say that Lakawal yelled “Allahu akbar!” (“God is great” in Arabic) as he fired and that he was subdued as he appeared to be reloading.

Both guard members, who were serving in West Virginia’s National Guard, were shot in the head last Wednesday. Beckstrom died from her wounds, President Donald Trump told troops in a Thanksgiving Day call.

Wolfe remains in serious condition. But West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey said Monday that he had showed signs of improvement after giving nurses a “thumbs-up” and being able to wiggle his toes.

Authorities have not yet identified a motive for the shooting.

A relative of Lakanwal said he arrived in the U.S. in September 2021 after having served in the Afghan army for 10 years alongside U.S. Special Forces troops. He was living in Bellingham, Washington, with his wife and five children, the relative added.

The CIA confirmed that Lakanwal worked for the U.S. government as a member of a partner force in Kandahar. His service ended in 2021 following the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.

Washington, DC, Council member Janeese Lewis George, a Democratic Socialist, launched her campaign for mayor of the nation’s capital on Monday – and she’s reportedly seeking to emulate Zohran Mamdani’s New York City mayoral bid. 

Lewis George, 37, is seeking to replace DC Mayor Muriel Bowser, who announced last week that she would not seek re-election to a fourth term. 

“Rent’s rising in homes people can’t afford. Folks are working hard and still feeling the squeeze, while the few in power rake in profits,” Lewis George said in a video announcing her run for mayor, echoing the rhetoric that propelled Mamdani to victory in the Big Apple. 

“And now our neighbors, our families, are under attack because we are failing to stand up to defend them,” the council member continued, as images of federal agents arresting people on the street played in the background. 

“That’s not the D.C., I know. That’s why I’m running for mayor,” Lewis George declared. “Because it’s time we had leaders who fight for the people who stand up to corruption and greed and stand with the people who make D.C. work.” 

Axios reported last month that Lewis George was aiming to build a 5,000-members strong volunteer army to knock on doors and phone bank.  

Her campaign was also hoping to bring on one of the Mamdani campaign’s top top digital advisers and target young voters online and on TikTok. 

Lewis George has served on the DC Council since 2021. 

She was endorsed by the DC chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), who congratulated “our chapter member” after her 2020 victory in the Ward 4 election. 

“Janeese’s grassroots, people-powered victories, both in the primary and in the general election, show that Ward 4 residents are tired of the big business and developer-friendly politics … Metro D.C. DSA is confident that George will be an elected leader who stands with the working class,” the group said in 2020. 

Like Mamdani, Lewis George has faced criticism for her past support for defunding the police. 

“I will absolutely divest from [DC’s Metropolitan Police Department] and put that money into violence interruption programs. Full stop,” she wrote on X in October 2019. 

Lewis George walked back her support for defunding the police during her 2020 campaign. 

The council member told the Washington Post that as mayor, she would focus on “evidence-based strategies to prevent crime,” suggesting swift punishment but short sentences for criminals work best. 

“We’ve focused a lot in the city on sentencing,” Lewis George told the outlet, “but what I’ve learned in law school and as a prosecutor is what deters crime is an individual knowing — am I going to get caught, and what are the chances of me being held accountable?”

President Trump surged federal law enforcement into the nation’s capital earlier this year and federalized the district’s police department as part of a sweeping crime crackdown — moves staunchly opposed by Lewis George.

Bowser was critical of Trump’s DC takeover but later acknowledged that it was helping reduce crime in DC.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said that the Afghan suspect behind the shooting of two National Guard soldiers — one dead — in Washington D.C. last week was likely “radicalized since he’s been here in this country.”

Noem shared this conclusion made by law enforcement on Sunday on NBC News’ “Meet the Press” and on ABC News’ “This Week.”

“We do believe it was through connections in his home community and state, and we’re going to continue to talk to those who interacted with him,” Noem said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”

Suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, came to the U.S. in August 2021 as part of Operation Allies Welcome, which coincided with the U.S. military forces’ withdrawal from Afghanistan under the Biden administration. Lakanwal was a member of a CIA-trained strike force, which required stringent vetting for him to be a part of. He was granted asylum under the Trump administration in April this year.

Noem, echoing other accusations made by Trump officials, blamed the Biden administration of not properly vetting Lakanwal as well as tens of thousands of other Afghans airlifted out of Afghanistan.

However, “Meet the Press” host Kristen Welker stated that Lakanwal was granted asylum by the Trump administration and explicitly asked Noem if the Trump administration vetted him before giving him the seal of approval. Noem then shared that was supposed to be done prior to Lakanwal being brought to the United States.

“The vetting process happens when the person comes into the country, and Joe Biden completely did not vet any of these individuals,” Noem said.

“This individual waited until he got into the United States and then that application for asylum was opened under the Joe Biden administration, when he was the president in the White House and allowed that to go forward with the information that they provided. That’s the Biden administration’s responsibility.”

Noem also shared that President Donald Trump has created a new screening process to vet asylum seekers.

“The individuals who are here in this country on that program need to be vetted under our standards that we’re implementing under President Trump to ensure that they even should be in our country and, if they’re not, removed immediately,” Noem said.

Last week, the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services shared on X that “USCIS has halted all asylum decisions until we can ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible.”

Noem said that the asylum process will resume once the backlog of asylum cases requiring vetting is cleared.