WASHINGTON: Several people were injured on Wed­nesday during a bizarre shooting incident outside the entrance to America’s super-secret National Secu­rity Agency (NSA), officials said.

An NSA statement said the shooting followed an attempt to gatecrash into the agency’s headquarters outside Washington. The vehicle, which “attempted to enter NSA’s secure campus without authorisation” has been demobilised, it added.

“NSA police and local law enforcement are addressing an incident that took place this morning at one of NSA’s secure vehicle entry gates. The situation is under control and there is no ongoing security or safety threat,” the agency said.

The NSA said several individuals were transported to a local hospital, adding that the “injuries are not attributable to gunfire”. The agency said the FBI had taken over the investigation but did not say if they had arrested suspects.

A video taken by a local television channel, WUSA, showed a black SUV with bullet holes in the windshield slammed against a concrete barrier near the NSA gates, in Fort Meade in Maryland. Video footage from WRC-TV showed police surrounding a handcuffed man sitting on the ground near the vehicle.

The White House said President Donald Trump was “briefed on the shooting at Fort Meade”, and he offered thoughts and prayers to those who have been affected.

The NSA collects and disseminates intelligence information from foreign electronic signals for US intelligence agencies, such as the CIA and FBI.

It also oversees code-breaking and monitors federal government computer networks to counter cyberterrorism.

Since NSA headquarters are located between two main highways, drivers occasionally take the wrong exit and end up at the gates.

Most motorists, however, are allowed to turn around and leave after initial interrogation.

Published in Dawn, February 15th, 2018