WASHINGTON — Two West Virginia National Guard members were critically injured Tuesday afternoon after a gunman opened fire on a patrol near the White House, authorities said.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the attack occurred around 2:15 p.m. at 17th and I streets NW, where National Guard personnel were conducting a high-visibility patrol. A suspect approached the guardsmen, raised a firearm and shot them in what Patel called “a horrendous act of violence.”

The two guardsmen were taken to a hospital and remain in critical condition, officials said.

Patel said the shooting is being investigated as a federal crime because it involved an assault on federal law enforcement personnel. The FBI is leading the investigation with assistance from the Department of Homeland Security, Secret Service,

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