Conservative activist Charlie Kirk has died after being shot at an event at Utah Valley University, President Donald Trump announced on social media.
The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead, the president wrote on Truth Social. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.
Kirk, a fervent supporter of Trump, was the founder of Turning Point USA, a group that seeks to spread conservative ideas to students on US campuses.
Officials say he had just begun speaking when a single gunshot rang out. Videos verified by BBC show him jolting backwards in his chair as students scatter in panic.
A spokeswoman for Utah Valley University, Ellen Treanor, said the gunfire came from the Losee Center, a building about 200 yards away.
Another spokesman, Scott Trotter, told the BBC: A single shot rang out in the quad near the food court on the Utah Valley University Orem Campus as Mr Charlie Kirk began speaking at his planned rally.
We can confirm that Mr Kirk was shot, but we don't know his condition, he said.
As the news broke, politicians from across the political spectrum condemned the attack, emphasizing the need to reject violence in all forms.
The nation mourns this tragic loss, igniting conversations around safety at public events and the growing concerns of political violence.
