Bernd Debusmann Jr
White House reporter

Christian Turner, the British ambassador to the United States, has just posted a "thank you" message for the US Secret Service.

Turner was at the event, as were other British embassy staffers.

"The @UKinUSA team attending tonight's White House Correspondents Dinner are grateful for the swift and professional response of the Secret Service," Turner wrote.

"We are thankful that the President and those in attendance were unharmed & our best wishes are with the injured officer," he added.

As we've reported, the guest list included numerous politicians, diplomats, celebrities and other prominent figures.

In social media posts, dozens of Congress members from both sides of the aisle are sharing their gratitude that the president and First Lady are safe, thanking Secret Service members for their quick action, and condemning the violence.

"Thankful for the swift law enforcement action to protect everyone from gunfire at the White House Correspondents Dinner," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries writes, adding, "The violence and chaos in America must end".

House Speaker Mike Johnson says he and his wife were present at the dinner, and they're thankful no innocent people were harmed.

"We're grateful as always for the law enforcement and first responders who acted so quickly to bring the situation under control," Johnson says. "Praying for our country tonight."

Indrani Basu
BBC News, Washington

I was inside the ballroom at the Washington Hilton hotel a few hours ago.

Here's what the event looked like before we were evacuated after gunshots were heard.

Image source, Indrani Basu / BBC News

Image source, Indrani Basu / BBC News

Image source, Indrani Basu / BBC News

Morgan Gisholt Minard
BBC News, reporting from the White House

While he was speaking to reporters in the White House briefing room a bit ago, President Trump directed a personal thank you to Weijia Jiang - who was sitting in the front row asking questions and is president of the White House Correspondents Association, which puts on this event every year.

The hundred or so press in the room gave a quick round of applause. Mr Trump then joked she was going to give a "killer question".

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Today's shooting incident took place at the Washington Hilton on Connecticut Avenue - the same hotel in which Ronald Reagan was shot and wounded in 1981.

That shooting took place on 30 March 1981, when the culprit, John Hinckley Jr, shot at Reagan as he was returning to his limousine after a speaking engagement inside the hotel.

Reagan survived, but was seriously wounded by a bullet that ricocheted off the side of a presidential limousine and hit him in the torso, breaking a rib and puncturing one of his lungs. He was rushed to the nearby George Washington University Hospital, and was eventually released on 11 April.

The then-White House Press Secretary, James Brady, was wounded in the same incident, as was a Secret Service agent and a local Metropolitan Police Department officer.

Brady suffered brain damage during he incident and was left disabled for the rest of his life. His injuries plagued him for the rest of his life and contributed to his death in 2014.

The following year, Hinckley was found not guilty by reason of insanity, but was confined to a high-security portion of Washington's St Elizabeth's Hospital until being discharged in 2016.

A plaque still marks the scene of the shooting on the side of the hotel.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
White House reporter

Image source, Getty Images

This is the third shooting or attempted shooting that has taken place around Donald Trump in just the last few years. It's become something of a pattern.

I was also in Butler, Pennsylvania on 13 July 2024 when 20-year-old Thomas Crooks shot at Trump, and the feeling in Washington is very similar to what I experienced that day.

Despite having just experienced another shooting, Trump seems in a buoyant mood.

But the prospect of being in a position in which he could be in danger appears to be something that Donald Trump has thought about, repeatedly.

"I can't imagine there's any profession that's more dangerous," Trump said in the briefing room.

Trump, and many close to him, have previously said that the shooting in Butler, perhaps more than anything else, marked a pivotal moment for the US president.

Even with a lack of clarity on what led to the shooting, tonight's events will almost certainly mark another one.

President Trump's comments that the job is inherently dangerous are apt. Tonight's incident took place inside the same hotel in which President Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981.

The local law enforcement briefing has now wrapped up.

We will bring you a few more details from President Trump's conference with reporters at the White House this evening.

Trump was asked what his message to the world was following the suspected shooting.

"You can have the greatest security in the world but if you've got a whack job whose brain is distorted, they can make trouble," he replied.

When asked "if it's possible to turn the temperature down" following this evening's incident.

"Probably, if I decided to just not do much and if I let everybody rip us off," he said.

The president says it is the cost of doing business to participate in politics in America.

He adds that there is political violence all over the world.

"I can't imagine that there's any profession that's more dangerous," he says, adding "no country is immune".

Image source, Getty Images

President Trump has insisted the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) event will go ahead within 30 days and that the alleged shooting would not disrupt regular planned events.

Guests had finished their first course when the gunshots could be heard outside the Washington Hilton ball room.

When asked how the event could return after the disruption, the US security service director Sean Curran told reporters "we do this every day" when assessing security threats at events attended by the president and cabinet members.

Authorities have confirmed that one of the shots fired hit a uniformed officer who was wearing body armour.

The US secret service agent is in hospital and receiving treatment for his injuries.

The alleged gunman, a 31-year-old man from California, is also being examined in a local hospital.

Carroll is asked how the suspect got so far into the venue with a high-caliber weapon.

Carroll says the investigation will go through video footage from across the hotel to determine how the gun got in.

"At this point, we don't have that level of detail," he says.

Image source, Reuters

The supect has been identified as Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of Torrance, California, US media report.

Washington DC's police chief Jeffery W Carroll says he was a hotel guest where the event was taking place and his room has been secured as part of the investigation.

He is asked if there are any security changes to related events around the US capital that typically follow the White House Correspondents Dinner. He says there is no reason to believe anyone else is in danger but there are extra officers out and about tonight for events such as after-parties.

Jeffery Carroll, the Interim Chief of the Metropolitan Police Department, is asked what the suspect's motivation was, and he answers that that is not yet known.

He says the fact that shots were fired does not mean this was a security failure.

The checkpoint, where the suspect was apprehended, was there for a reason and it worked, Carroll says.

The suspect was not previously known to the MPD, he adds.

Image source, Reuters

We have some more information about the suspect from local authorities.

Jeanine Pirro, US attorney for Washington, says the suspect is facing two counts for using firearm during crime of violence and assault on federal officers using dangerous weapon.

She says the suspect will be arraigned before a federal court on Monday.

A few details are emerging about the alleged armed suspect, who was seen running towards the ballroom at the Washington Hilton before officers stopped him.

The BBC's US partner, CBS News, reports that the suspect is believed to be a 31-year-old man from Torrence, based in Los Angeles' south-western suburbs in California.

Washington DC mayor said the suspect was receiving treatment in a nearby hospital and remains in police custody.

Todd Blanche, Trump's Attorney General, said that he would be charged "very soon".

Image source, @realDonald Trump/ Truth Social

The Director of the Secret Service, Sean Curran, commends his agents actions tonight.

"We saw exactly what our brave men and women do each and every day to protect our protectees. It's not easy, and I will tell you that they performed admirably."

It's very fortunate that the officer who was shot is alive, and he's being observed, Curran says.

He thanks Trump for reaching out to him, and says the Secret Service will continue its mission.

Jeffery W. Carroll, interim chief of for the Metropolitan Police Department, says the suspect has multiple weapons.

"He was armed with a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives," he says.

He says the Secret Service agent who was injured was sent to a local hospital and he is in "good spirits".

The suspect was not struck by gunfire, Carol says, and that it appears the suspect is a lone gunman. He says there is no danger to the public at this time.

Image source, Reuters

President Trump's briefing has ended but we will continue to bring a few more of his comments from the White House podium.

Meanwhile, we are tuning into a press conference with local authorities which has just begun.

Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser says the agent who was shot is being treated at hospital, and the suspect is also in hospital being evaluated.

She says she's thankful to law enforcement, and all guests are safe.

There's no reason to believe anyone else was involved, she adds.

Moments before addressing the media in the press briefing room, Trump shared CCTV footage appearing to show the suspect running into the hotel ballroom.

The man runs past the security metal detectors as security agents draw their guns.

Trump also shared two photos appearing to show a shirtless man on the foyer floor with his hands behind his back, believed to be the suspected shooter.

Morgan Gisholt Minard
BBC News, reporting from White House

It’s very unusual to see the first lady in the briefing room. This marks the first of the three known shooting incidents at events attended by the president where the First Lady was also present.

The president said she knew "right away" what was going on.

Trump is asked how this event will impact him as a leader.

"I like not to think about it," Trump answers. "I lead a pretty normal life considering, you know, it's a dangerous life. I think I handle it as well as it can be handled."

He says you read stories of this happening to other people and they "become basket cases".

"To be honest, I'm not a basket case. Really I take it as it is. I do it for the country. I'm not doing it for any other reason."

The First Lady recognizes the danger of the job, and it's dangerous for her too, Trump says.

At first he wasn't sure if the sound was a tray being dropped or a bullet, he adds.

"I was hoping it was a tray, but it wasn't."