Shooting at Trump rally is being investigated as assassination attempt

Shooting at Trump rally is being investigated as assassination attempt
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A campaign rally site for Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is empty and littered with debris after guns were fired on July 13, 2024, in Butler, Pennsylvania, (AP)
Shooting at Trump rally is being investigated as assassination attempt
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Trump supporters are seen laying in the stands after guns were fired at Republican candidate Donald Trump at a campaign event at Butler Farm Show Inc. in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 14 July 2024
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Shooting at Trump rally is being investigated as assassination attempt

Shooting at Trump rally is being investigated as assassination attempt
  • A local prosecutor said the suspected gunman and at least one attendee are dead
  • The attack was the first attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981

BUTLER, Pennsylvania: Donald Trump appeared to be the target of an assassination attempt as he spoke during a rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday, law enforcement officials said. The former president, his ear covered in blood, was quickly pulled away by Secret Service agents and his campaign said he was “fine.”
A local prosecutor said the suspected gunman and at least one attendee are dead. It wasn’t immediately clear if Trump was shot.
The attack, by a shooter who law enforcement officials say was then killed by the Secret Service, was the first attempt to assassinate a president or presidential candidate since Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981. It comes amid a deeply polarized political atmosphere, just four months from the presidential elections and days before Trump is to be officially named the Republican nominee at his party’s convention.
“President Trump thanks law enforcement and first responders for their quick action during this heinous act,” spokesman Steven Cheung said in a statement. “He is fine and is being checked out at a local medical facility. More details will follow.”
The Secret Service said in a statement that “the former President is safe.” Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., said after 8 p.m. that he spoke to his father on the phone and that “he is in great spirits.”
“There’s no place in America for this type of violence,” President Joe Biden, who is running against Trump as the presumptive Democratic nominee, said in remarks. “It’s sick. It’s sick.”
Two officials spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing investigation. They said the shooter was not an attendee at the rally and was killed by US Secret Service agents.

The officials said the shooter was engaged by members of the US Secret Service counterassault team and killed. The heavily armed tactical team travels everywhere with the president and major party nominees and is meant to confront any active threats while other agents focus on safeguarding and evacuating the person at the center of protection.
It’s still not clear yet whether Trump was struck by gunfire or was injured as he was pulled to the ground by agents.
Butler County district attorney Richard Goldinger said in a phone interview that the suspected gunman was dead and at least one rally attendee was killed.
A rally disrupted by gunfire
Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, was showing off a chart of border crossing numbers during his last rally before the Republican National Convention opens Monday when the apparent shots began.
It took two minutes from the moment of the first shot for Trump to be placed in a waiting SUV.
As Trump was talking, a popping sound was heard, and the former president put his right hand up to his right ear, as people in the stands behind him appeared to be shocked.
As the first pop rang out, Trump said, “Oh,” and grabbed his ear as two more pops could be heard and he crouched down. More shots are heard then.
Someone could be heard saying near the microphone at Trump’s lectern, “Get down, get down, get down, get down!” as agents tackled the former president. They piled atop him to shield him with their bodies, as is their training protocol, as other agents took up positions on stage to search for the threat.
Screams were heard in the crowd of several thousand people. A woman is heard screaming louder than the rest. Afterward, voices were heard saying “shooter’s down” several times, before someone asks “are we good to move?” and “are we clear?” Then, someone ordered, “Let’s move.”
Trump could be heard on the video saying at least twice, “Let me get my shoes, let me get my shoes,” with another voice heard saying, “I’ve got you sir.”
Trump got to his feet moments later and could be seen reaching with his right hand toward his face. There appeared to be blood on his face. He then pumped his fist in the air and appeared to mouth the word “Fight” twice his crowd of supporters, prompting loud cheers and then chants of “USA. USA. USA.”
The crowd cheered as he got back up and pumped his fist.
His motorcade left the venue moments later. Video showed Trump turning back to the crowd and raising a fist right before he is put into a vehicle.
Reporters covering the rally heard five or six shots ring out and many ducked for cover, hiding under tables.
After the first two or three bangs, people in the crowd looked startled, but not panicked. An AP reporter at the scene reported the noise sounded like firecrackers at first or perhaps a car backfiring.
But then there were more shots. Panic set in as people realized what was happening. Shouts of “Get down!” rang through the crowd.
When it was clear the situation had been contained and that Trump would not be returning to speak, attendees started filing out of the venue. One man in an electric wheelchair got stuck on the field when his chair’s battery died. Others tried to help him move.
Police soon told the people remaining to leave the venue and US Secret Service agents told reporters to get “out now. This is a live crime scene.”
Two firefighters from nearby Steubenville, Ohio, who were at the rally told the AP that they helped people who appeared injured and heard bullets hitting broadcast speakers.
“The bullets rattled around the grandstand, one hit the speaker tower and then chaos broke. We hit the ground and then the police converged into the grandstands, said Chris Takach.
“The first thing I heard is a couple of cracks,” Dave Sullivan said.
Sullivan said he saw one of the speakers get hit and bullets rattling and, “we hit the deck.”
He said once Secret Service and other authorities converged on Trump, he and Takach assisted two people who may have been shot in the grandstand and cleared a path to get them out of the way.
“Just a sad day for America,” Sullivan said.
“After we heard the shots got fired, then the hydraulic line was spraying all around, you could see the hydraulic fluid coming out of it. And then the speaker tower started to fall down,” Sullivan said. “Then we heard another shot that, you could hear, you knew something was, it was bullets. It wasn’t firecrackers.”
“They weren’t super loud shots,” he said.
“You could hear it landing, ammunition landing, on metal,” Takach added.
Then they took cover behind a farm tractor.
Sullivan said they were concerned for Trump and saw him stand up.
“He got up and he gave a motion he was OK,” Sullivan said, raising a fist as Trump had.
Political violence again shakes America
The perils of campaigning took on a new urgency after the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy in California in 1968, and again in 1972 when Arthur Bremer shot and seriously hurt George Wallace, who was running as an independent on a campaign platform that has sometimes been compared to Trump’s. That led to increased protection of candidates, even as the threats persisted, notably against Jesse Jackson in 1988 and Barack Obama in 2008.
Presidents, particularly after the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, have even greater layers of security. Trump is a rarity as both a former president and a current candidate.
Biden was briefed on the incident, the White House said. He received an updated briefing from Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the United States Secretary Service, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, and White House homeland security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall.
He told reporters after 8 p.m. that he hadn’t been able to reach Trump yet but was briefed that the former president was “doing well.”
“I hope I get to speak to him tonight,” he said.
After the shooting at Trump’s rally the Biden campaign was pausing all messaging to supporters and is working to pull down all of its television ads as quickly as possible, the campaign said.
Donald Trump Jr. posted a photo on X of Trump, his fist raised and his face bloody in front of an American flag, with the words: “He’ll never stop fighting to Save America.”
North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the three men on Trump’s shortlist for vice president, all quickly sent out statements expressing concern for the former president, with Rubio sharing an image taken as Trump was escorted off stage with his fist in the air and a streak of blood on his face along with the words “God protected President Trump.”
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, said in a statement on X that he had been briefed on the situation and Pennsylvania state police were on hand at the rally site.
“Violence targeted at any political party or political leader is absolutely unacceptable. It has no place in Pennsylvania or the United States,” he said.
 


Russian attacks leave one million Ukrainians without power

Russian attacks leave one million Ukrainians without power
Updated 7 sec ago
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Russian attacks leave one million Ukrainians without power

Russian attacks leave one million Ukrainians without power
  • Ukraine is bracing for what could be its toughest winter of the almost three-year war

KYIV: More than a million Ukrainians were left without power in freezing cold temperatures on Thursday after a massive nationwide Russian missile and drone attack.

Ukraine is bracing for what could be its toughest winter of the almost three-year war as Moscow steps up its aerial bombardment of the war-torn country and its troops advance on the frontlines in the east.

“There are emergency blackouts all over the country due to the enemy’s attack on our energy sector. There is no end in sight,” said the CEO of the Yasno energy supplier Sergey Kovalenko.

President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff said Russia was “continuing their tactics of terror,” seeking to plunge Ukrainian civilians into darkness and cut of heating in the coldest months of the year.

“They stockpiled missiles for attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure, for warfare against civilians during... winter,” Andriy Yermak said in a post on Telegram.

The combined missile and drone attack, launched in waves throughout the early hours of Thursday, knocked out electricity for more than a million subscribers in Ukraine’s west, hundreds of kilometers from the front lines.

“As of now, 523,000 subscribers in Lviv region are without electricity,” regional head Maksym Kozytskyi said on social media.

The western region, which borders EU and NATO member Poland, has been spared the worst of the fighting of Russia’s 33-month invasion but has been targeted in Russian drone and missile attacks sporadically.

Regional officials said at least another 280,000 were cut off in the western Rivne region and another 215,000 in the northwestern Volyn region, which also borders Poland.

The full extent of the damage was still being assessed on Thursday morning, with Russian drones also having targeted the capital Kviv, the northeastern city of Kharkiv and port city of Odesa on the Black Sea and other regions reporting power outages.

“Power engineers are working to ensure backup power supply schemes where possible. They have already started restoration work where the security situation allows,” the energy ministry said.

It said it was the 11th massive Russian attack on Ukraine’s civilian energy infrastructure this year.

In an early morning warning posted on social media as the strikes were unfolding, Ukraine’s Energy Minister German Galushchenko said facilities were “under massive enemy attack.”

The strikes, which came as temperatures hit 0 degrees Celsius in many Ukrainian cities, are the latest in two weeks of dramatic escalation in the near three-year war.

A senior UN official, Rosemary DiCarlo, this month warned Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure may make this winter the “harshest since the start of the war.”

Both sides have fired new weapons in an attempt to gain an upper hand ahead of Donald Trump being inaugurated as US president in January.

Russia earlier this week said it was preparing its own retaliation for Ukrainian strikes on its territory using US-supplied ATACMS missiles.

Kyiv has launched at least three attacks on Russian border regions with the missiles since the White House gave it permission to fire them on Russian territory.

Moscow responded to the first strike by firing a never-before-seen hypersonic ballistic missile at the Ukrainian city of Dnipro and Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the nuclear-capable missile could be used against Western countries next.

Trump on Wednesday named staunch loyalist and retired general Keith Kellogg as his Ukraine envoy, charged with ending the Russian invasion.

The incoming president has criticized US aid to Ukraine and boasted he could secure a ceasefire in hours — comments that have triggered concern in Kyiv that the US could push it to cede land.

Kellog, an 80-year-old national security veteran, co-authored a paper this year calling for Washington to leverage military aid as a means of pushing for peace talks.

Concerned at a string of Russian advances on the frontline, the outgoing Joe Biden administration has also urged Ukraine drop the minimum age of conscription from 25 to 18 to plug severe manpower shortages.

Russia’s defense ministry also said Thursday it had downed 25 Ukrainian drones fired overnight, including 14 over the southern Krasnodar territory — just to the east of the annexed Crimean peninsula.


China says top military official Miao Hua suspended, under investigation

China says top military official Miao Hua suspended, under investigation
Updated 28 November 2024
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China says top military official Miao Hua suspended, under investigation

China says top military official Miao Hua suspended, under investigation
  • Latest senior apparatchik to fall in a sweeping crackdown on graft in the country’s armed force
  • Unconfirmed reports say defense minister Dong Jun was also placed under investigation for corruption

BEIJING: China said Thursday that top military official Miao Hua had been removed from office and was suspected of “serious violations of discipline,” the latest senior apparatchik to fall in a sweeping crackdown on graft in the country’s armed forces.
The ruling Chinese Communist Party “has decided to suspend Miao Hua from duty pending investigation,” Wu Qian, spokesman of China’s Ministry of Defense, told a press briefing.
Wu did not provide further details about the charges against Admiral Miao, a member of Beijing’s powerful Central Military Commission.
But “serious violations of discipline” are commonly used by officials in China as a euphemism for corruption.
The announcement follows reports, unconfirmed by Beijing, that Defense Minister Dong Jun has been placed under investigation for corruption.
If confirmed, Dong would be the third Chinese defense minister in a row to be probed for graft.


India’s parliament suspended temporarily after row over allegations against Adani group

India’s parliament suspended temporarily after row over allegations against Adani group
Updated 28 November 2024
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India’s parliament suspended temporarily after row over allegations against Adani group

India’s parliament suspended temporarily after row over allegations against Adani group
  • The problem is that India’s states are unprepared for the rapid rise in renewable generating capacity, lack adequate transmission infrastructure and storage

NEW DELHI: Both houses of Indian parliament were suspended temporarily on Thursday within minutes of opening as opposition lawmakers disrupted proceedings for the third day this week seeking a discussion on allegations against the Adani Group.

US authorities have accused Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani and managing director of Adani Green, Vneet S. Jaain, of being part of a scheme to pay bribes of $265 million to secure Indian solar power supply contracts, and misleading US investors during fund raises there.

“We want a discussion on this in parliament. It is going to be the third day that we are demanding a reply from the prime minister” on the Adani issue, Manickam Tagore, a lawmaker from the main opposition Congress party, which has been leading the protests against the business group, told news agency ANI.

Many of India’s opposition parties accuse Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of favoring Adani and blocking investigations against him in India, accusations both have denied.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who has been a vocal critic of Adani, said Gautam Adani, 62, should be arrested.

While the government has not made any comment on the indictment, Modi’s BJP has said it had no reason to defend Adani, adding that the party was not against industrialists and considered them partners in nation-building efforts.

“Let him defend himself,” BJP spokesperson Gopal Krishna Agarwal said on Tuesday, adding that the law would take its course.


Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing

Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing
Updated 28 November 2024
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Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing

Landslides in Indonesia’s Sumatra kill at least 27, rescuers search for missing
  • Torrential rain in the province since last week had caused flash floods and landslides in four different districts
  • Extreme weather is expected in Indonesia toward the end of 2024, as the La Nina phenomenon increases rainfalls across the tropical archipelago

JAKARTA: Indonesian rescuers are searching for passengers trapped in a minibus buried in mud after flash floods and landslides hit several locations in North Sumatra province, killing at least 27, an official said on Thursday.
Torrential rain in the province since last week had caused flash floods and landslides in four different districts, Indonesia’s disaster agency has said.
A landslide in a village in Deli Serdang on Wednesday killed seven and injured 20, Hadi Wahyudi, North Sumatra police spokesperson told Reuters.
Rescuers were looking for missing people, including those trapped in a minibus and other vehicles on a hilly interprovince road hit by a mudslide, he said, adding he could not give an estimate for the number of affected people.
In other places, rescuers have found 20 dead during a search that started over the weekend. They are still searching for two missing.
“Today, we’re focusing our search to find missing people and clearing the roads affected by the landslides,” said Hadi, adding excavators were deployed.
The landslides and flash floods damaged houses, mosques, and rice fields.
Heavy rains also triggered floods in the provincial capital of Medan, forcing a delay in votes for a regional election in some polling stations.
Extreme weather is expected in Indonesia toward the end of 2024, as the La Nina phenomenon increases rainfalls across the tropical archipelago, the country’s weather agency has warned.


The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16

The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16
Updated 28 November 2024
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The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16

The Australian Senate debates the world’s first social media ban for children under 16
  • The bill that would make social media platforms liable for fines of up to $33 million for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts

MELBOURNE: The Australian Senate was debating a ban on children younger than 16 years old from social media Thursday after the House of Representatives overwhelmingly supported the age restriction.
The bill that would make platforms including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for systemic failures to prevent young children from holding accounts.
It is likely to be passed by the Senate on Thursday, the Parliament’s final session for the year and potentially the last before elections, which are due within months.
The major parties’ support for the ban all but guarantees the legislation will become law. But many child welfare and mental health advocates are concerned about unintended consequences.
Unaligned Sen. Jacqui Lambie complained about the limited amount of time the government gave the Senate to debate the age restriction, which she described as “undercooked.”
“I thought this was a good idea. A lot of people out there thought it was a good idea until we looked at the detail and, let’s be honest, there’s no detail,” Lambie told the Senate.
Opposition Sen. Maria Kovacic said the bill was not radical but necessary.
“The core focus of this legislation is simple: It demands that social media companies take reasonable steps to identify and remove underage users from their platforms,” Kovacic told the Senate.
“This is a responsibility these companies should have been fulfilling long ago, but for too long they have shirked these responsibilities in favor of profit,” she added.
Sen. David Shoebridge, from the minor Greens party, said mental health experts agreed that the ban could dangerously isolate many children who used social media to find support.
“This policy will hurt vulnerable young people the most, especially in regional communities and especially the LGBTQI community, by cutting them off,” Shoebridge told the Senate.
The House of Representatives on Wednesday overwhelmingly carried the bill 102 votes to 13.
Communications Minister Michelle Rowland urged senators to pass the bill which she said reflected the Australian community’s view.
“The ... government is on the side of supporting parents and protecting young people,” Rowland told the House.
Once the legislation becomes law, the platforms would have one year to work out how they could implement the ban before penalties are enforced.
The platforms complained that the law would be unworkable, and urged the Senate to delay the vote until at least June next year when a government-commissioned evaluation of age assurance technologies made its report on how young children could be excluded.
Critics argue the government is attempting to convince parents it is protecting their children ahead of general elections due by May. The government hopes that voters will reward it for responding to parents’ concerns about their children’s addiction to social media. Some argue the legislation could cause more harm than it prevents.
Criticisms include that the legislation was rushed through Parliament without adequate scrutiny, is ineffective, poses privacy risks for all users, and undermines parental authority to make decisions for their children.
Opponents of the bill also argue the ban would isolate children, deprive them of the positive aspects of social media, drive them to the dark web, discourage children too young for social media to report harm and reduce incentives for platforms to improve online safety.