Kirk had spoken for about 20 minutes when shots were suddenly heard. A spokesperson for the university tells NBC that Kirk was hit by shots and that he was taken from the scene by security personnel.
The incident occurred at 20:30 Swedish time on Wednesday. Late on Wednesday evening, the American president confirms in a post on Truth Social that Charlie Kirk is dead.
"The fantastic, and even legendary Charlie Kirk, is dead", Trump writes, and sends his condolences to Kirk's family.
No one else is reported to have been shot. One person is reported to have been arrested, but this is not the suspected shooter, according to sources to AP.
Shortly after the shooting, Trump urged via his platform Truth Social to pray for Kirk.
"We must all pray for Charlie Kirk, who has been shot. A fantastic guy through and through", Trump writes.
Political heavyweights react
Also, Vice President JD Vance urged his followers on X to pray for Kirk. Several other political heavyweights reacted with dismay over the incident, including Defense Minister Pete Hegseth, Justice Minister Pam Bondi, Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson, Health Minister Robert F Kennedy, and California's Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom.
Also, Sweden's Deputy Prime Minister Ebba Busch (KD) expressed horror over the incident.
"Terrible images from the event in Utah where the conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was shot, the extent of the injuries unclear. I am horrified and dismayed. How did we end up here?", she writes on X.
31-year-old Kirk is a conservative political commentator, debater, and media personality who is close to US President Donald Trump. He co-founded the organization Turning Point USA and was, according to the organization's website, at Utah Valley University as part of what is described as a conversation tour with a focus on conservative values.
Millions of followers online
Kirk has become an increasingly influential voice and has 5.2 million followers on X and 7.3 million followers on Tiktok. He is particularly known for organizing large public debates, such as the one in Utah, where people in the audience are invited to debate various topics with Kirk.
The university where the appearance took place is Utah's largest with over 46,000 students and is located about six miles south of the state capital Salt Lake City.
