What is Operation Allies Welcome? Explaining how DC shooter Rashmanullah Lakanwal entered the US

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, suspect in the Washington shooting, was admitted under Operation Allies Welcome has sparked renewed scrutiny of the program.

Published on: Nov 27, 2025, 07:05:54 IST

By Shirin Gupta

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Washington, D.C. shooting suspect, a 29-year-old Afghan national named Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was taken into custody after being shot by other guardsmen, CBS News reported.

Rashmanullah Lakanwal entered the US under Biden's Operation Allies Welcome (AP/Representational Image)

Law-enforcement sources revealed to the New York Post that Lakanwal entered the U.S. under Operation Allies Welcome and had been resettled in Bellingham, Washington.

What is Operation Allies Welcome?

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had launched Operation Allies Welcome (OAW) on August 29, 2021, to coordinate the resettlement of Afghans who evacuated amid the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The programme sought to provide a haven to “vulnerable Afghans” that include interpreters, embassy-affiliated staff, and other at-risk individuals. These were people who had aided U.S. forces for over two decades.

The resettlement process included biometric and biographic screening by multiple agencies such as the intelligence community, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), DHS, and the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD).

According to Global Refuge, OAW brought tens of thousands of Afghan evacuees into the United States under humanitarian parole or related visa programs; many have since been relocated from temporary bases to communities across the country.

Shooter's background stokes security concerns

Rashmanullah was admitted to the States under the OAW program and was settled in Washington, D.C.

This information has reignited public and political debate over the vetting procedures and national security risks woven into the 2021 resettlement effort, pertaining to which now Former President Joe Biden is now under fire.

Opponents of the program argue that the urgency of evacuation compromised thorough screening. Indeed, the most recent independent assessment by the DOJ’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) noted that the rapid pace made full vetting difficult, increasing the risk that “bad actors” could slip in.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shirin Gupta
Shirin Gupta is a content producer with the Hindustan Times. She covers everything between politics, entertainment and sports at the US desk. Shirin got interested in political journalism during her time as a web editor at her college newspaper NCC News in Syracuse when she first started seeing the effects of national politics in life of her fellow colleagues. Shirin has worked on a wide range of fast-moving and developing stories locally when she was at NCC editing accessible reports for the audience. Her current role requires her to track real-time updates, verify information and present balanced coverage across diverse beats. Covering US politics from an international newsroom perspective has further deepened her understanding of how domestic decisions can have far-reaching global consequences. With a keen interest in international affairs, Shirin continues to build her expertise in geopolitics, policy shifts, and cross-border developments. She aims to learn and evolve her reporting in matters of geopolitics and international issues. Outside the newsroom Shirin writes about books and music for her personal blog. She is an avid consumer of pop culture and reveres literature.Read More

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