FBI investigating shooting of 2 National Guard members as potential international terrorism: Sources

Editor’s note: The West Virginia governor initially said that the 2 Guard members had died but has since said there is conflicting information about their conditions.

Two National Guard members from West Virginia were in critical condition Wednesday after a gunman opened fire on them in an apparent “targeted shooting” near the White House, officials said.

The suspect is believed to be from Afghanistan and to have entered the U.S. in 2021, law enforcement sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

Several sources told ABC News that the FBI is investigating the shooting as a potential act of international terrorism, suggesting authorities are trying to determine if it may have been inspired by an international terrorist organization.

Law enforcement officials and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in D.C. are expected to provide more information on the suspect on Thursday.

The Guard members were a woman and man, according to a law enforcement official briefed on the situation, and were being treated at local hospitals. The unidentified suspect rounded a corner, raised his arm with the weapon and opened fire about 2:15 p.m., MPD Executive Assistant Chief Jeffrey Carroll said.

“It appears … to be a lone gunman that raised a firearm and ambushed these members of the National Guard,” he said.

The suspect was in custody after being subdued by other Guard members nearby, according to Carroll. The unidentified male suspect was in critical condition.

“They heard the gunfire and they actually were able to intervene and to hold down the suspect after he had been shot on the ground,” Carroll said of the responding Guard members.

It is not immediately clear who shot the suspect, but Carroll said the Guard members who were shot were armed.

A motive has not been determined, however, Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser said the individual “appeared to target” the Guard members.

Police believe they’ve identified the suspect and are investigating the man’s background to determine a motive, including looking into potential ties with international or domestic terrorism.

Multiple law enforcement agencies, including U.S. Marshals, ATF and the FBI, responded to the shooting. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said her agency was working with local authorities to gather more information.

According to a D.C. police official, an active shooter incident was reported near the entrance to the Farragut West Metro station.

President Donald Trump has been briefed on the shooting, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

A White House official confirmed the White House was put on lockdown but that the order was later lifted about 5 p.m. Trump is currently in Florida, where he is spending Thanksgiving at his Mar-a-Lago club.

“The animal that shot the two National Guardsmen, with both being critically wounded, and now in two separate hospitals, is also severely wounded, but regardless, will pay a very steep price,” Trump wrote on his social media platform on Wednesday afternoon. “God bless our Great National Guard, and all of our Military and Law Enforcement. These are truly Great People. I, as President of the United States, and everyone associated with the Office of the Presidency, am with you!”

The National Guard was deployed to the nation’s capital as part of President Trump’s federal takeover of the city and crime crackdown in August. According to the most recent update, there were 2,188 Guard personnel assigned to D.C.

On Tuesday, during the traditional turkey pardoning at the White House, Trump touted his administration’s takeover of D.C. streets. He said it was “one of our most unsafe places anywhere in the United States. It is now considered a totally safe city.”

“You could walk down any street in Washington and you’re going to be just fine. And I want to thank the National Guard. I want to thank you for the job you’ve done here is incredible,” Trump said at the event.

Vice President JD Vance addressed the shooting on Wednesday as he spoke to troops at Fort Campbell in Kentucky, where he was spending the day serving meals to soldiers and their families ahead of Thanksgiving.

“We’re still learning everything. We still don’t know the motive,” Vance said.

“It’s a somber reminder that soldiers, whether they’re active duty reserve or National Guard, our soldiers are the sword and the shield of the United States of America,” the vice president said. “And as a person who goes into work every single day in that building and knows that there are a lot of people who wear the uniform of the United States Army, let me just say very personally thank them for what they’re doing.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth posted video of himself speaking about the shooting on his X account.

He called it a “cowardly, dastardly act” and said President Trump had asked him to send another 500 National Guardsmen into D.C.

“This will only stiffen our resolve to ensure that we make Washington, D.C. safe and beautiful. The drop in crime has been historic, the increase in safety and security has been historic. But if criminals want to conduct things like this, violence against America’s best, we will never back down,” he said.

Gen. Steven Nordhaus, chief of the National Guard Bureau, and Senior Enlisted Advisor John Raines are heading to D.C. to be with the troops there.

“We are devastated by this senseless act of violence,” Nordhaus said in a video statement.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

ABC News’ Jack Date, Katherine Faulders, Beatrice Peterson, Mike Levine, Chris Boccia, Anne Flaherty, Jay O’Brien, Alexandra Hutzler and Ivan Pereira contributed to this report.