WASHINGTON — A gunman opened fire near the White House on Saturday evening, with US Secret Service agents killing the assailant in a shoot-out during which a bystander was also struck, authorities said.

The gunshots prompted a lockdown at the White House. A bystander was struck by gunfire and was reportedly in critical condition.

The law enforcement agency said in a statement posted on X that the man was in the area of 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue when he "pulled a weapon from his bag" and began firing. Secret Service officers returned fire and hit the suspect, who died at a hospital, the agency said.

A bystander was also struck on Saturday, but a law enforcement official said it wasn't clear whether that person was hit by the suspect's initial bullets or those fired subsequently by officers.

The Secret Service said none of its officers were injured, and that US President Donald Trump — who was at the White House at the time — was not "impacted". Trump originally was scheduled to spend the weekend at his New Jersey golf club, but changed his plans on Friday to stay at the White House instead, The Associated Press reported.

FBI Director Kash Patel said on social media that agency personnel were on the scene and "we will update the public as we're able".

The suspect was identified as 21-year-old Nasire Best, said a law enforcement official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation, AP reported.

According to District of Columbia court records, Best was arrested in July 2025 after he attempted to enter a different White House checkpoint without authorization, didn't heed officers' commands to stop, "claimed he was Jesus Christ" and said he wanted to be arrested.

An initial hearing was held and a "Pretrial Stay Away Order" was issued, typically a measure ordering a defendant not to go near a person or area before a trial. A bench warrant was issued in August after a notice of "noncompliance" against Best, who did not appear for a subsequent hearing.

Evidence of the shooting was visible on a sidewalk just outside the White House complex, where yellow crime scene tape snaked across the pavement and Secret Service officers placed dozens of orange evidence markers on the ground. Medical materials, including what appeared to be purple surgical gloves and kits typically used by emergency medical personnel, were also seen.

Journalists who were on the White House North Lawn at the time said they were ordered to run and shelter in the press briefing room.

ABC News' White House correspondent Selina Wang said: "I was in the middle of taping on my iPhone for a social video from the White House North Lawn when we heard the shots. It sounded like dozens of gunshots. We were told to sprint to the press briefing room where we are holding now."

It was the third time in the past month that shots were fired near the president after incidents at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in April and near the Washington Monument earlier in May.

AGENCIES-XINHUA