(Ken Silva, Headline USA) CNN has reported that the Trump administration granted asylum in April to the man accused of murdering two members of the National Guard on Wednesday.
While CNN is a notoriously anti-Trump outlet, officials have declined to comment on its report. FBI Director Kashyap Patel dodged questions about the timing of the asylum granted to the suspect, Afghan national and CIA asset Rahmanullah Lakanwal.
“Can you clarify the timeline of when the suspect was granted asylum?” a reporter asked Director Patel, to which he responded: “I believe Kristi Noem put that out, and that’s a DHS matter, I’ll refer it to them.”
REPORTER: “Can you clarify the timeline of when the suspect was granted asylum?”
KASH PATEL: “I believe Kristi Noem put that out, and that’s a DHS matter, I’ll refer it to them.”
Translation: He knows the timeline undermines their narrative, so he’s passing the buck.
The… pic.twitter.com/OWIUenfGO8
— Brian Allen (@allenanalysis) November 27, 2025
Suspect worked with CIA during Afghanistan War
A resident of the eastern Afghan province of Khost who identified himself as Lakanwal’s cousin said Lakanwal was originally from the province and that he and his brother had worked in a special Afghan Army unit known as Zero Unit in the southern province of Kandahar. He said he had last spoken to Lakanwal about six months ago.
The cousin spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
The cousin said both brothers had moved to the United States in 2021. He said Lakanwal had started out working as a security guard for the unit in 2012, and was later promoted to become a team leader and a GPS specialist.
Zero Units, criticized as “death squads” by human rights groups, were paramilitary units manned by Afghans but backed by the CIA and also served in front-line fighting with CIA paramilitary officers. Activists had attributed abuses to the units. They played a key role in the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from the country, providing security around Kabul International Airport as the Americans and others fell back during the Taliban offensive that seized the country.
Accoridng to the New York Times, Lakanwal had been spiraling in the months leading up to his alleged attack.
“Lakanwal had suffered from mental health issues and was disturbed by the casualties his unit had caused,” the Times, reported, citing one of the alleged shooter’s childhood friends.
Meanwhile, the Taliban has denounced his actions.
“They fled to the United States in search of a better life,” a Taliban spokesman said in a social media post, as reported by the Times. “These traitors still do not let the Afghan people live in peace.”
Lakanwal, 29, entered the U.S. in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a Biden administration program that evacuated and resettled tens of thousands of Afghans after the U.S. withdrawal from the country, officials said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ken Silva is the editor of Headline USA. Follow him at x.com/jd_cashless.
