United States President Donald Trump and other high-ranking administration officials were abruptly evacuated from the room at the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) annual dinner last night following a security incident.
Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts to resolve the Middle East crisis have suffered another setback as Trump on Saturday cancelled the planned visit of his envoys to Pakistan, effectively halting their movement for the anticipated face-to-face engagement with Iranian officials.
Trump and other government officials were quickly evacuated from the Washington Hilton Hotel after gunshots broke out.
The US Secret Service said a suspect was in custody, while a report confirmed the shooter was dead.
Trump was in a secure location and had told officials that he intended to return to the dinner, according to a senior administration official.
Trump took to the Truth Social to share that a “shooter has been apprehended” and applaud Secret Service and law enforcement officers for acting “quickly and bravely.”
“I have recommended that we “LET THE SHOW GO ON” but, will entirely be guided by law enforcement. They will make a decision shortly,” Trump wrote in the post. “Regardless of that decision, the evening will be much different than planned, and we’ll just, plain, have to do it again.”
CNN’s Wolf Blitzer was “a few feet away from (a gunman) as he was shooting,” he said on air.
“All the sudden a guy with a weapon, it was a very, very serious weapon, it starts shooting, and I happened to have been a few feet away from him as he was shooting,” Blitzer said.
Weijia Jiang, the president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, which hosted the dinner, said the programme will “resume momentarily.”
“I know everyone’s going to want as many details as possible. And right now, we don’t have that,” Jiang told the attendees, adding, “Please just be patient as we figure out just how much time it will be, but it shouldn’t be that much longer.”
A number of top administration officials were in attendance, including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Images by AFP showed Secret Service agents evacuating the top leaders including US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
CBS, BBC’s US-based media partner, said the President and First Lady Melania Trump were removed from the dais by the Secret Service.
Following their exit, armed agents from the Counter Assault Team (CAT) were seen standing on stage with long guns aimed toward the back of the room.
Senior government officials, including FBI Director Kash Patel, were also quickly evacuated from the room after what appeared to be approximately five gunshots were heard.
Defence Secretary, Pete Hegseth, was also escorted out by his security details.
According to pool reports and CNN, police flooded the Washington Hilton as helicopters circled overhead after the incident.
BBC reported that Trump appeared to be part way through a conversation when he was interrupted by a commotion at the White House table.
Loud bangs could be heard and then various secret service members escorted the president away from the venue as they called out “stay down, stay down”.
Trump’s top adviser, Stephen Miller, could be seen being escorted from the crowd and out of the venue.
Most other attendees initially crouched down during the commotion but remained inside after the president was evacuated.
This is the first security breach at the dinner in recent memory, if ever. It was also the first time Trump attended the event as sitting president.
As the event kicked off, Correspondents’ Association President, Jiang, thanked Trump and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt for attending.
“It is meaningful that you are with us tonight,” Jiang said. “And White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, thank you for everything you and your team does to work with us every day, whether you like it or not.”
Covering the White House is the “best assignment in all of journalism, Jiang continued.
“We have the privilege of covering the biggest story in the world every single day,” she said.
Sunday Ehigiator
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