FBI Probes Possible Ties Between National Guard Shooter and Islamic Revivalist Group

The FBI is investigating whether the suspect in last month's fatal shooting of a National Guard member in Washington, D.C. had connections to the Islamic missionary movement Tablighi Jamaat, as new details emerge about his activities before the attack.

Federal investigators are examining potential ties between National Guard shooting suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal and the global Islamic missionary movement Tablighi Jamaat, according to sources familiar with the investigation.

Lakanwal, a former Afghan commando, is accused of ambushing and shooting two West Virginia National Guard members near the White House on November 26. Soldier Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her injuries, while Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains hospitalized in critical condition.

Sources indicate that in phone calls with his wife before the attack, Lakanwal stated he was "doing Tablighi"—a reference to missionary work associated with Tablighi Jamaat. This detail, provided by the suspect's brother to the FBI, has prompted agents to scrutinize whether members of the group's U.S. network played any role in radicalizing, facilitating, or financing Lahanwal.

Tablighi Jamaat, a revivalist movement founded in 1926, is publicly apolitical and denounces violence. However, some counterterrorism analysts and reports, including one from the Brussels-based South Asia Democratic Forum, have described it as a potential "catalyst" or "gateway" for radicalization due to its insular missionary culture. The group operates legally in the United States.

The investigation also seeks to understand Lahanwal's psychological state and cross-country travel from Washington state to D.C. Emails from a volunteer caseworker, reviewed by Fox News, described a pattern of "manic" road trips where Lahanwal would vanish for days, behaviors noted in the months leading up to the attack.

Lakanwal's brother, a fellow former Afghan intelligence officer, has expressed shame over the incident and is cooperating with authorities. Former Afghan military commanders who served with Lakanwal have voiced disbelief, noting he spent years fighting the Taliban, whose ideology shares roots with the Deobandi school from which Tablighi Jamaat emerged.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem previously stated that investigators believe Lahanwal was radicalized within the U.S. through connections in his local community. The FBI's probe continues as it pieces together the suspect's path from a relocated Afghan ally to an alleged attacker on American soil.