Taliban Denies Ties to Afghan Suspect in Deadly Washington Shooting
Amir Khan Muttaqi, acting foreign minister of the Taliban administration, has denied any connection between Afghanistan and the recent shooting of U.S. National Guard members in Washington, attributing the incident instead to U.S. military actions. He stated that the suspect had been trained by the U.S. and left Afghanistan illegally.
This marks the Taliban’s first official response to the November 26 shooting in Washington, in which two members of the U.S. National Guard were injured, one of whom later died. The suspect, 29-year-old Rahmanullah, had reportedly collaborated with groups affiliated with the CIA during the U.S. presence in Afghanistan.
According to official information, Rahmanullah was relocated to the United States in 2021 as part of a resettlement program following the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan. U.S. sources say he experienced isolation in the country and had exhibited signs of radicalization.
In a statement posted by his office on the social media platform X, Muttaqi emphasized that the incident is unrelated to the Afghan government or its people. He said, “They trained this man, employed him, and transferred him to the U.S. through a process that did not align with international norms.”
Following the shooting, U.S. President Donald Trump suspended visa issuance for all Afghan nationals, and all Afghan immigration case processing has been halted. The investigation into the motive behind the shooting is ongoing.
