United States President Donald Trump has said that Sarah Beckstrom, one of the two US national guard troops shot in an ambush near the White House on Thursday, had died.
Hailing Beckstrom, 20, as a "highly respected, young, magnificent person," Trump said he had learned of her death shortly before beginning a video call with US troops to mark the Thanksgiving holiday.
"The other young man, is fighting for his life. He's in very bad shape," Trump said as he addressed the troops, referring to Andrew Wolfe, 24, who was also shot in the attack.
The alleged gunman, a 29-year-old Afghan national who had served with US troops in Afghanistan, is being detained in hospital.
The US attorney for Washington DC, Jeanine Pirro, said the suspected assailant — identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal — had been living in the western state of Washington and had driven across the country to the nation's capital.
In what she called a "brazen and targeted" attack, Pirro said the gunman opened fire with a revolver on a group of guardsmen on patrol on Thursday, just a few blocks shy of the White House.
The suspect was initially charged with three counts of assault with intent to kill — charges that Pirro said would immediately be upgraded to first-degree murder if any of the guardsmen died.
Officials said they still had no clear understanding of the motive behind the shooting.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has said it is probing the incident as an act of terrorism.
Trump's administration has ordered an immediate halt to the processing of immigration applications from Afghanistan in the wake of the shooting.
This is a developing story and this article will be updated.
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