A gunman was killed and another person was injured near the White House.

May 24, 2026 (PEN) Late Saturday night, U.S. Secret Service agents killed 21-year-old Naseer Best and wounded another person in an armed clash near a checkpoint at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and 17th Street in the vicinity of the White House in Washington, according to CNN.

The network quoted a security official as saying that security personnel responded to a report of gunfire, before Best returned fire after taking a gun out of his bag, resulting in his death and the injury of a person who was present at the site, without any injuries being recorded among the security personnel.

The official explained that Best, who was from Maryland and had been living in Washington for the past 18 months, was taken to George Washington University Hospital after the accident, where he died.

The Secret Service opened an investigation into the incident after dozens of shots were heard, prompting heightened security measures, the closure of the White House's North Lawn, and the transfer of journalists to the conference room, before the lockdown was later lifted.

Court records revealed, according to the network, that Best had a security history near the White House; he stopped traffic at the entrance to the complex in June 2025, was then transferred to a psychiatric hospital, before being arrested later for trying to break into the driveway inside the complex, resulting in an order to remove him.

His social media posts also reportedly included calls described as "extremist" and threats interpreted as being directed at the US president.

The incident comes less than a month after another shooting near the White House during a White House Correspondents' Association dinner.