Former US President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate in November’s election, was evacuated from a campaign rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday with blood running down his ear, after gunfire that killed at least one person in the audience.
The suspected shooter and a bystander were killed, US media reported, citing local judicial authorities.
Donald Trump “is safe,” announced a spokesperson for the Secret Service, responsible for protecting presidents and ex-presidents, while his campaign team assured that he was in good health and “examined in a medical facility” on site.
It was Donald Trump’s last rally before the Republican convention, where he is to be officially nominated as the Republican Party’s nominee to face Democratic incumbent Joe Biden in November’s election.
Donald Trump, who had just begun his speech with one of his usual tirades about migrants whom he accuses his Democratic successor of having allowed massive numbers of people to enter the country, was immediately knocked to the ground by Secret Service agents.
Shouts of terror rang out from the audience. After a few moments, Donald Trump stood up, his hair disheveled and without his red cap, surrounded by the agents. “Let me get my shoes,” he was heard telling them.
He was then escorted from the stage to his car, raising his fist in the air several times in defiance, to cheers from his supporters.
“We saw a lot of people throwing themselves on the ground, looking confused. I heard the gunshots, it sounded like something between firecrackers and a small-calibre pistol,” a sympathiser, John Yeykal, told AFP at the scene.
“No place for violence”
President Biden said he was “relieved” to hear that Trump was “safe and well,” saying there was “no place for this kind of violence in America.”
I was briefed on the shooting at Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania.
I’m grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well. I am praying for him and his family and for all those who were at the rally, as we await further information.
Jill and I are grateful to the Secret…— President Biden (@POTUS) July 13, 2024
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he was “horrified.”
“There is absolutely no place for political violence in our democracy,” also reacted the former Democratic president Barack Obama.
“While we do not yet know exactly what happened, we should all be relieved that former President Trump was not seriously injured, and use this moment to renew our commitment [à faire preuve] of civility and respect in politics,” he wrote on X.
There is absolutely no place for political violence in our democracy. Although we don’t yet know exactly what happened, we should all be relieved that former President Trump wasn’t seriously hurt, and use this moment to recommit ourselves to civility and respect in our politics.…
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) July 13, 2024
Elon Musk responded by expressing his support for Donald Trump and wishing him a “speedy recovery.”
More details will follow.