Kuwait city: US President Donald Trump was briefed Wednesday afternoon on the shooting of two National Guard members in downtown Washington, D.C., and is "actively monitoring this tragic situation. The Metropolitan Police Department reported around 2:45 p.m. Eastern that it was on the scene of a shooting near the intersection of 17th and I streets NW, just about two blocks from the White House.
According to Kuwait News Agency, MPD reported shortly later on social media that one suspect was in custody. Trump posted that both guardsmen were "critically wounded" and taken to two separate hospitals. The shooter, he added, was "also severely wounded, but regardless, will pay a very steep price." The White House was placed on lockdown due to the shooting, according to a White House official. Trump and first lady Melania Trump are in Florida for the Thanksgiving holiday and were not present at the time of the shooting.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on social media that "two National Guardsmen" were shot and that the department was "working with local law enforcement to gather more information." Trump mobilized 800 National Guard members to the district in August, on the grounds of a "crime emergency," despite a nearly 30-year low in violent crime in the city. In that same action, the President federalized the district's police force for 30 days. While the federalization of the police force expired, Trump has kept the National Guard in the district.