Air Force Staff Sergeant Healing Following Sustaining Gunshot Wounds in Washington DC

A member of the Air National Guard is showing improvement after he was critically injured in an ambush-style shooting last month in Washington DC.

The parents of Andrew Wolfe, 24, report "his head wound is gradually improving and that he's beginning to 'look more like himself,'" said the state's chief executive Patrick Morrisey.

The family anticipates the military non-commissioned officer to be in intensive treatment for the next two to three weeks, and they feel optimistic about his recovery, said the governor.

Staff Sgt Wolfe was one of two state guardsmen shot when a shooter opened fire not far from the White House on 26 November. His fellow guardsmember, twenty-year-old Sarah Beckstrom, died from her injuries.

"Our request remains for all West Virginians and the nation's citizens for their thoughts and prayers!" Morrisey declared.

Morrisey was present at a candlelight gathering on last Friday night for Staff Sgt Wolfe at Musselman High School in Inwood, West Virginia, where the guardsman was once a student.

A clergyman at the vigil read a message from the soldier's parents, Jason and Melody Wolfe.

"It is clear to us that there is a difficult journey to go," they wrote, as reported by regional media Metro News.

"However our belief keeps us hopeful. We remain thankful for the prayers and the encouragement from people all over the world."

Previously, the state official said the serviceman had responded to a nurse with a thumbs-up and was able to move his toes.

Law enforcement have formally accused the suspected shooter, an Afghan national named the suspect, with first-degree murder and assault with intent to kill.

Before coming to the United States in 2021, he was once a member of a special forces unit in a CIA-backed unit that worked with US forces in the South Asian nation.

The injured airman was one of 2,000 National Guard members whom President Donald Trump dispatched to the Washington DC in last summer as part of his policy initiative in urban centers.

Following the incident, Trump said he desired an additional five hundred military personnel sent to the District of Columbia.

The Trump administration has also cited the attack as a reason for additional restrictive policies.

They have halted naturalization proceedings for foreign nationals from a list of nations that were part of a travel ban implemented over the summer, including Afghanistan.