08:24
FBI confirms bullet hit Trump’s ear
The FBI has confirmed that Trump’s ear was indeed hit by a bullet. This is the first official statement on the injuries to the former president’s ear, two weeks after the attack.
Earlier this week, FBI Director Christopher Wray said there was some doubt about whether Trump was hit by a bullet, shrapnel or glass. This angered Trump and his team, who frequently used the attack in the former president’s election campaign.
Wray’s remarks further strained the already troubled relationship between Trump and the security service: Trump and his supporters have accused the FBI of being against him for years. “It is no wonder that the once legendary FBI has lost the trust of America,” he wrote on his own social media platform Truth Social. He also called Wray’s lyrics “damaging to all the great people who work for the FBI.”
The lack of an official statement also left room for speculation.The New York Timespreviously reported on the flood of conspiracy theories that emerged on social media following the attack. Rumors on X that the CIA, Antifa or Joe Biden were behind the attack were viewed more than 100 million times in 24 hours. Theories also emerged that it was a false flag operation, organized by Trump’s campaign team.
Trump responded to the FBI statement in his own way last night during a meeting in Florida. “Have you seen that the FBI has apologized?” he asked the audience, although the law enforcement agency’s statement did not mention any apology. “This is never over with these people. We accept their apology,” the former president said.
Jasper Daams
18:40 24/07/2024
The shooter sought details about the assassination of John F. Kennedy
Thomas Crooks, who opened fire on presidential candidate Donald Trump a week and a half ago, is said to have looked up details about the assassination of John F. Kennedy shortly before the assassination attempt. Crooks, 20, is said to have Googled, among other things, how far away the perpetrator Lee Harvey Oswald was from Kennedy when he fired the shot, the FBI director said today during a press conference.a hearing in the House of Representatives.He is also said to have been “very focused on Trump and his rally” since July 6.
The assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, left one bystander dead and two others seriously injured. Officers were able to eliminate Crooks. Trump suffered a minor injury to his ear.
Thom Canter
16:33 23/07/2024
US media: Secret Service chief resigns over Trump attack
The head of the Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting US presidents and presidential candidates, has resigned, according to several US media reports. Kimberly Cheatle came under fire following the failed assassination attempt on President Trump.
Yesterday, Cheatle apologized for the Secret Service’s failure during a House hearing, calling the failure to prevent the attack on Trump the biggest mistake in decades.
He did not announce at the time that he was resigning, but did so a day later. According to the AP news agency, he announced his decision in an email to his staff. In it he says he will “take full responsibility for the security breach.”
Joram Bollé
21:05 22/07/2024
Secret Service director apologizes to Trump after attack
Kimberly Cheatle, the head of the US Secret Service, has apologized to Donald Trump following the attempt on his life. Cheatle said this today during a hearing before the House of Representatives, where she had to answer for the failure of her service.
Earlier today, Cheatle acknowledged responsibility for the “biggest security service blunder in decades.” Several members of Congress, both Republican and Democratic, have called for his resignation. Cheatle says he is not considering that.
Cheatle revealed little about the precise circumstances of the attack, much to the chagrin of the delegates present. She admitted that security already had the attacker in their sights. He was classified as a “suspicious person” and not a “threat”. Thomas Crooks, 20, only received that last stamp “a few seconds before he opened fire”.
Dana Holscher
17:43 22/07/2024
Secret Service chief: ‘Trump assassination attempt was biggest blunder in decades’
Kimberly Cheatle, director of the US Secret Service, has called the attack on Donald Trump “the biggest mistake” by the security service in recent decades. She spoke in the House of Representatives, where Cheatle is to answer for today’s attack.
Cheatle said he took full responsibility for the security breach during Trump’s campaign speech in Butler, Pennsylvania. Several Republican members of Congress then called for his resignation.
Cheatle did not reveal any new information about the circumstances of the attack and how Thomas Crooks, the 20-year-old, was able to get so close to the presidential candidate. He explained that this is because the investigation is still ongoing. He confirmed that Crooks had already been seen before the attack carrying a so-called “rangefinder,” a distance meter often used in hunting. However, such a tool is not prohibited at such events, Cheatle said.
Shortly after the attack, it emerged that local police were responsible for securing the building from which Crooks fired. However, police had informed the Secret Service before the event that they did not have enough personnel to do so. When asked why the Secret Service did not deploy its own people afterward, Cheatle did not respond today, to the dismay of members of Congress.
Dana Holscher
07:00, 18/07/2024
“The Secret Service knew: the warehouse where the shooter was located is not protected”
The Secret Service knew that local Pennsylvania police could not secure the building where the shooter was sitting when he shot Trump.Washington PostThis further embarrasses the Secret Service, which was already under fire after Saturday.
The building, which was located just outside the venue where Trump held his campaign rally, should have been secured by local police, the Secret Service explained in recent days. But even before Donald Trump traveled to Pennsylvania for his campaign rally on Saturday, the Secret Service was “informed that local law enforcement did not have sufficient personnel to assist in securing that building,” Richard Goldinger, the local prosecutor, told the American newspaper.
An anonymous Secret Service employee confirms Goldingers’ reading. The employee agreed that the service considered the presence of an agent in the vicinity of this building as a possible security measure. It was one of the ways to prevent a gunman from seeing the former president, who was at a podium about 150 meters away.
The Secret Service is once again embarrassed by this new explanation. The service is responsible for security measures around public events attended by the former president. If it was known in advance that this building could not be protected, the question is why the event took place at all.
The events of last Saturday are the subject of several investigations. In addition to the Senate, President Joe Biden has also announced an independent investigation into the security measures taken by the Secret Service.
Iva Venneman
Read a profile of Secret Service chief Kimberly Cheatle, who has come under fire following the attack on Trump.
08:15, 17/07/2024
Biden wants to ban weapons used in attacks, Trump’s position on guns remains the same
US President Joe Biden wants to ban the weapon used by the alleged perpetrator of the attack on former President Donald Trump. He said so in a campaign speech in Las Vegas. It is the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle. ‘An AR-15 was used in the attack on Donald Trump. This weapon has killed many other people, including children,’ Biden said. The AR-15 used in the attack on Trump was legally owned by the father of the alleged perpetrator. He had bought the bullets himself.
The AR-15 is one of the most popular rifles in the United States, with millions of examples in circulation. In 1994, as a senator, Biden was involved in a bill that would ban the AR-15 and similar assault rifles. The law was passed, but expired ten years later. Since then, all attempts to ban assault rifles have failed. As president, Biden also repeatedly advocated for a ban on such weapons.
Donald Trump has not changed his mind about US gun policy because of the assassination attempt. If he wins the presidential election in November, according to his adviser, he even wants to offer additional protection to the right to own weapons by appointing judges who are against restrictive measures.
Like many Republicans, Trump fully supports the Second Amendment to the US Constitution, which guarantees the right to bear arms. Democrats have been calling for years for stricter legislation to reduce the number of fatal shootings.
Daan de Vries
Read also: The bullet that hit Trump in Butler came from the barrel of ‘America’s favorite’: the AR-15
07:55, 17/07/2024
US received information about Iranian plan to assassinate Trump, not linked to attack
The United States has received intelligence in recent weeks about an Iranian plot to assassinate former President Donald Trump. CNN reports this. The White House stresses that Saturday’s attack is separate from the Iranian threat: there is no indication that the alleged perpetrator has ties to foreign countries.
The Iranian assassination plot is said to be intended as retaliation for the death of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in January 2020 on the orders of then-President Trump. The US National Security Council has since taken into account an Iranian attempt on Trump’s life, spokeswoman Adrienne Watson confirmed.
The National Security Council passed information about the Iranian plan to the Secret Service, which was supposed to have increased Trump’s security. Trump’s campaign team was also aware of the threat.
The Secret Service has been heavily criticized since the attack, because the suspected attacker was able to climb unopposed onto a rooftop overlooking Saturday’s campaign rally and open fire on Trump. Trump suffered minor injuries to his ear and one visitor to the rally was killed.
Iran denies the allegations and calls the report “baseless and malicious.” In a statement, Iranian officials wrote that they view Trump as a criminal and want to put him on trial for his order to kill Soleimani.
Daan de Vries
07:29, 17/07/2024
Welcome to this live blog.
In this live blog we will keep you informed of the aftermath of the attack on former US President Donald Trump. Read the previous live blog on the attack here.
