@Carla

While we don't know the motive, it seems highly likely that he may have become radicalized while in the U.S., a not a "sleeper" who slipped in.

There are too many unanswered questions at this time. How long did he work for the U.S. in Afghanistan? Did his family come in with him? Was his family denied entry? Was his family murdered or tortured by the Taliban? Did he face harassment in the U.S. as a Muslim? What motivate him travel from Washington state to Washington D.C. to shoot at members of the National Guard?

According to news reports, the suspect is a husband and father of at least five children, according to his former landlord in Bellingham, Washington. According to at least one news report, his wife and children came with him from Afghanistan.

Lakanwal applied for asylum in December 2024 and was approved on April 23 of this year — and had no known criminal history, a Trump administration official told Reuters.

NBC News, citing an interview with an unnamed relative of the suspect, reported early on Thursday that Lakanwal served in the Afghan army for 10 years alongside U.S. Special Forces troops and was stationed in Kandahar for part of that time. The relative also said Lakanwal was working for online retail giant Amazon.com

But painting a broad brush at all Afghan allies surely isn't the answer and could trigger the very thing we wouldn't want: radicalization by others.

Nor does it seem anyone is discussing what directly led to this: the U.S. withdrawl from Afghanistan.

It just seems highly unlikely that this guy was a "sleeper" with the intent of getting into the U.S. so that in a few years he could shoot at a couple members of the National Guard when he had far better opportunities to shoot at U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan for ten years.

It is far more likely he became radicalized sometime since being in the United States. And if that is the case, the question is why and how.