Kathmandu. A US Secret Service agent was killed in a shooting near the White House on Saturday evening. A bystander was also injured in the incident. President Donald Trump was inside the White House at the time of the incident but is safe, officials say.

U.S. Secret Service communications chief Anthony Guglielmi said security forces responded after 6 p.m. when a man pulled a weapon out of his bag and opened fire.

The suspect was rushed to a hospital where doctors pronounced him dead. A bystander at the scene was also shot during the shooting, but no further details about his condition were released.

US media identified the suspect as 21-year-old Nasiri Best of Maryland. According to reports, Best had a history of mental health issues and had frequent contacts with members of the Secret Service in the past.

No SS officer was injured in the incident. After the shooting, police and security forces immediately cordoned off the area around the White House and took control. National Guard troops also restricted movement in downtown Washington.

Reid Adrian, a Canadian tourist who was near the scene, said he initially heard what sounded like fireworks, but quickly thought it was gunshots. According to him, people around him started running away.

At the time, reporters on the North Lawn of the White House were told to take shelter in the press briefing room. ABC News correspondent Selina Wang was recording a video for social media when the shooting occurred.

“It felt like dozens of shots were fired,” he told X.

The incident also appears to be linked to a series of alleged security threats to President Donald Trump over the past few days. Trump, 79, has previously been the target of three separate assassination attempts.

The most recent incident took place on April 25, when an armed man stormed a security checkpoint at the Trump Media Gala. The man was not able to reach Trump or the guests at the event.

In July 2024, Trump was shot at an election rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. A bystander was killed in the incident, while the then candidate suffered minor injuries to his ear. A few months later, another armed man was arrested near a golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, where Trump was playing.

In the aftermath of Saturday’s shooting, House Republicans took to social media to express relief that Mr Trump was safe and praised the Secret Service’s swift response. They have also expressed the view that political violence should end.

Trump, meanwhile, has cited security requirements as a major reason for a new ballroom project under construction at the White House complex since he took office last year. The $400 million project will include a highly secure and “drone-resistant” structure, including an underground military hospital, according to Trump, a New York-based real estate tycoon.