ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – US President Donald Trump and senior officials were evacuated Saturday after a shooter rushed a media dinner gala in Washington, with the president hailing security personnel for doing a “fantastic job.” 

A gunman stormed through a security checkpoint at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington on Saturday, leading Secret Service agents to quickly whisk away Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and other members of the cabinet. 

“The shooter has been apprehended, and I have recommended that we ‘LET THE SHOW GO ON’ but, will be entirely guided by Law Enforcement,” Trump said on Truth Social following the incident. 

One Secret Service officer was injured in the attack, Trump said, questioning the venue as “not a particularly secure” facility in a White House press conference. 

The president later posted a photo of the shooter, whom he described as a “lone wolf,” getting apprehended.

Cole Tomas Allen, 31, of California, was identified as the shooter, according to US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, who told reporters that Allen has been charged with two counts of violent crimes, and more charges are expected. 

On July 13, 2024, Trump was the target of an assassination attempt during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when a gunman fired shots, striking the president in the ear and killing an attendee. 

“The people that do the most … the people that make the biggest impact, they’re the ones that they go after,” Trump told a reporter, when asked why he has repeatedly been targeted.