US President Donald Trump has said a "shooter has been apprehended" after he and First Lady Melania Trump were rushed out of the White House Correspondents' Association dinner by Secret Service agents.
The Secret Service said Mr Trump and his wife "are safe" following their evacuation in response to a loud, unidentified noise.
It added one individual was in custody and the incident took place near the main screening area for the event.
Other Trump administration officials attending the dinner were also evacuated after a loud commotion and noise near the hotel ballroom where the dinner was being held.
At a press conference in the White House press briefing room, the president said a man armed with multiple weapons and wearing a bulletproof vest charged a security checkpoint at the event.
He said one officer was shot but "is in great shape".
Mr Trump said the suspect was "totally subdued" by officers, calling him a "would-be assassin".
At a separate press conference, the DC police chief said the suspect will be arraigned tomorrow on firearms and assault charges.
She added that based on preliminary information, authorities believe the man was a guest at the hotel.
Many of the 2,600 attendees took cover while waiters fled to the front of the dining hall when the loud bangs happened.
Tactical teams with guns drawn took position on the stage where Mr Trump had been sitting during dinner.
Police also swarmed the Washington Hilton Hotel where the event was taking place, and helicopters hovered overhead.
In a post on social media, Mr Trump said: "Secret Service and law enforcement did a fantastic job.
"They acted quickly and bravely."
The incident erupted after the welcoming speech and during dinner, before Mr Trump was due to speak.
A cabinet official, Mehmet Oz, said "shots fired upstairs" as he was rushed out by security.
President Trump was the target of an assassination attempt during a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania in 2024.
Mr Trump was grazed on his right ear when a 20-year-old gunman opened fire from a nearby rooftop while the Republican presidential candidate was holding a campaign rally in Butler on 13 July.
One person in the audience was killed and the gunman, Thomas Crooks, was shot dead by a Secret Service sniper.
A few months later, another man was arrested after a Secret Service agent saw the barrel of a rifle poking from the bushes on the perimeter of the West Palm Beach golf course where Mr Trump was playing a round.
The Washington Hilton where the gala was taking place was the site where Republican President Ronald Reagan was shot by a would-be assassin in 1981.
President Trump was attending the correspondents' dinner for the first time while in office.
The White House Correspondents' Association invited Mr Trump this year despite his repeated attacks on the media.
The move had drawn backlash across newsrooms, and hundreds of journalists signed an open letter asking attendees to call out Mr Trump's press restrictions.
Unlike all other presidents from the past 100 years, Mr Trump has never attended the White House Correspondents' Dinner while in office - until now.
The "Nerd Prom" as attendees dub it brings together hundreds of Washington journalists and media executives to raise funds for scholarships and awards.
