15:24 Witnesses describe chaotic scenes at Trump assassination
During Trump's campaign speech in Pennsylvania, shots were fired causing chaos and panic. Witnesses speak of speculations about fireworks, the sound of gunshots, gunshots on the roof, and the moment Trump fell to the ground.
14:58 Leading Republican: "We need to tone down the rhetoric"The President of the US House of Representatives, Republican Mike Johnson, is trying to calm things down. "We need to tone down the rhetoric", he says on MSNBC. "We need to lower the temperature in this country."
14:30 Expert: "Trump assassination attempt is an opportunity for Biden"
14:03 Trump calls for reconciliation"It's more important than ever that we come together", writes Donald Trump on his platform "Truth Social". He is already looking forward to speaking in Wisconsin "to our great country" this week. In Milwaukee in the US state of Wisconsin, the Republican National Convention takes place from Monday to Thursday. Trump writes further, he is praying for the wounded, and holds the memory of the slain citizen "in our hearts". Trump had already called for unity in his inaugural address as US President in January 2017.
12:58 NATO Secretary-General Stoltenberg shocked over assassination attemptNATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg is shocked over the attack on Trump. "I am shocked by the attempted assassination of former President Trump", he writes on X. He wishes him a speedy recovery and is thinking of the victims. Political violence has no place in democracies. The NATO allies stand together to defend freedom and values.
12:13 Video shows seconds between the shooter's shots and the Secret Service's shotsThe American gossip news site TMZ shows a video in which it appears that both the shooter's shots and the shots that likely saved Trump's life can be heard. The attack caused panic among the bystanders. The recording was made from outside the area where the rally took place, as TMZ reports.
11:40 Secret Service denies Republican allegationThe Secret Service has denied the allegation that they had refused additional security resources for Trump in the last months. "The claim that a member of the former President's security team requested additional security resources that were denied by the Secret Service or the Home Security Department is absolutely false", said Secret-Service-Spokesman Anthony Guglielmi. In fact, the Secret Service had recently increased security measures.
Few hours after the attack on Trump, Republican Congressman Michael Waltz had said that he had "reliable sources" who told him that "there have been repeated requests for stronger intelligence service protection for President Trump". Waltz provided no evidence.
11:16 Steinmeier wishes Trump swift recoveryBundespresident Frank-Walter Steinmeier condemns the attack and expresses condolences to the victim's family: "I condemn the assassination attempt on the 45th US President, Donald J. Trump", Steinmeier writes in a statement. "Violence has no place in our democracy - not in America, not here. We all can contribute: Let us respect violence in political disputes! Let us push back hatred and hate speech from campaigning and debates! Democracy tolerates sharp controversies - but violence destroys democracy. Donald J. Trump and the injured deserve swift recovery. My deepest condolences to the victim's family."
10:32 Expert: "Trump produced that image directly, instinctively"Seconds after the shots were fired, Donald Trump is seen raising his fist towards Secret Service agents, bloodied. Political scientist Thomas Jaeger sees the "master of political marketing" at work here. It remains to be seen if Trump can continue spinning his "witch hunt" narrative.
10:10 Sharpshooter seemed to have noticed the assassin just before the first shotsA post on X shows a sharpshooter at Trump's rally in exactly the moment the shots were fired. Sharpshooters are deployed at such events by the Secret Service to secure the area - which apparently did not go well in this case. The sharpshooter seems to be observing something or someone through his telescopic sight. He recoils, just before the shots can be heard, suggesting that he became aware of the shooter in that moment. Shortly thereafter, the assassin was shot.
09:23 Participant warned of the assassin before the attackParticipants at Trump's rally in Butler had noticed a man with a rifle on a roof near the venue before the shooting. One of them, Greg Smith, alerted on-site security: "Hey man, there's a guy with a rifle on the roof", he later told the BBC. Their response: "Ha, what?", as if they had not known what was going on. "I thought: Why is Trump still speaking, why didn't they get him off the stage? ... The next thing I heard were five gunshots."
09:15 Scholz condemns the attack as abhorrentBundeskanzler Olaf Scholz speaks out on X about the assassination attempt against Trump: "The attack on US presidential candidate Donald Trump is abhorrent. I wish him a swift recovery. My thoughts are also with those affected by the attack. Such acts threaten democracy."
08:28 Photographer captures image of possible projectileDoug Mills, a photographer for the "New York Times", apparently took a photo by chance in the moment a bullet narrowly missed Donald Trump. The photo "could very well show the air displacement caused by a projectile", says Michael Harrigan, a retired FBI agent, who spoke to the newspaper. In principle, it is possible to photograph a flying bullet, Harrigan added. Mills used a Sony digital camera at the Trump rally, which can take up to 30 images per second. The photo was taken with a shutter speed of 1/8000 seconds.
08:00 Alleged Shooter Identified as a RepublicanThe FBI has identified the suspect. It is a man named Thomas Matthew Crooks. The 20-year-old victim, who was killed during the shooting attempt, is from the small town of Bethel Park in the US state of Pennsylvania, an hour south of Butler, where the Trump rally took place. Crooks is a registered Republican. According to reports he donated $15 to a Democratic donation organization on the day of Biden's inauguration in January 2021.
The "New York Post" points out that Crooks was 17 years old at the time of the donation. He registered as a Republican Party member in September 2021 when he turned 18.
07:46 Expert: "Secret Service needs to answer some questions"Donald Trump, as an ex-President and candidate, is under the protection of the Secret Service. There are highest security precautions at all campaign events, as Obama's former campaign advisor Julius van de Laar reports. It remains to be worked out how such an attacker could still manage to attack.
07:38 World leaders express shockWorld leaders reacted shocked to the attack on Ex-President Trump. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen writes on X, she is deeply shocked, wishes Trump a quick recovery, and expresses her condolences to the innocent victim's family. "Political violence has no place in a democracy", she writes. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also expresses similar sentiments. "My thoughts are with former President Trump, the participants of the event, and all Americans."
The United Nations also condemns the attack on Trump. "The Secretary-General condemns this act of political violence in the strongest terms", explains the spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres. "He wishes President Trump a quick recovery." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shares that he is "appalled" by the news of the attack. "Such violence has no justification and no place in the world. Never should violence prevail." Zelensky also wishes Trump a quick recovery.
Already on Saturday evening (local time), Biden had stated that he was grateful that Trump was safe and doing well. In the USA, there is "no place for this kind of violence".
07:21 Open questions to the Secret ServiceFBI agent Kevin Rojek says at a press conference that it is "surprising" that the shooter was able to fire several shots. In response to a question about security measures, he says that such questions must be answered by the Secret Service. Although the name suggests otherwise, the Secret Service is not an intelligence agency, but (among other things) responsible for the security of US presidents and former US presidents.
"They conduct the initial security assessments and determine where the various security locations should be located", Rojek says. "And they are the ones responsible for securing the crime scene." A representative of the Secret Service is not present at the press conference. "Nobody was available", so Rojek.
07:04 Trump in New Jersey, apparently unharmedA Trump spokesperson posted a video showing Trump leaving an airport in New Jersey unaided. His injured ear was not visible in the video. The Republicans have announced that the Nominating Convention will go ahead as planned; the Convention takes place from Monday to Thursday in Milwaukee. There, Trump will officially be nominated as the Republican Presidential candidate. US President Biden announced that the Democrats would stop all campaign ads as soon as possible.
06:50 Shooter fired from a roof near the rallyAnthony Guglielmi, a spokesperson for the Secret Service, said the suspect fired "multiple shots towards the stage" and was on "an elevated position" outside the event venue. This suggests that a roof near the rally was meant.
06:39 Shooter is reportedly a 20-year-old from PennsylvaniaThe person who shot Trump is a 20-year-old man from Pennsylvania, according to a source familiar with the investigation of the "Washington Post". The FBI officially stated that they have not yet identified the shooter but are "close" to doing so. The shooter is dead. According to Pennsylvania police, it is too early to say whether it was a lone gunman. However, there is no indication of "any further threat".
06:25 Media: Trump discharged from hospitalTrump was discharged from the hospital late Saturday evening (local time), according to a report by Bloomberg.
06:01 FBI confirms attempted assassination of Ex-President Trump at rallyFollowing the shooting at a campaign rally in the US state of Pennsylvania, the FBI has classified the incident as an "attempted assassination" against former President Donald Trump. "This is an attempted assassination against our former President Donald Trump," FBI Agent Kevin Rojek said in Butler, the location of the rally. Trump was injured in the ear, and according to official reports, the shooter and a bystander were killed, and two others were seriously injured.
04:41 Biden calls Trump after the attackUS President Joe Biden personally called Trump after the attack, the White House announced, without disclosing the contents of the conversation. On Sunday, Biden will be briefed by law enforcement agencies about the status of the investigation, it was further stated.
03:58 Republicans plan to hold Convention despite Trump attackThe US Republicans plan to hold the Nominating Convention in Milwaukee this week as planned, despite the attack on their Presidential candidate Donald Trump. The party and Trump's campaign team made this announcement in a joint statement. The Republicans will gather in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, starting Monday to officially nominate the 78-year-old as their Presidential candidate.
03:54 Authorities: Shooter fired from an elevated positionAt the shooting of the Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump, the suspect fired from an "elevated position" outside the event venue, according to the Secret Service. A bystander was killed, and two others were seriously injured. Initially, there was talk of a seriously injured person.
02:55 Trump: I was hit by a bullet in the earThe former US President Donald Trump, according to his own statements, was injured by a bullet during a campaign appearance. "I was hit by a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear", Trump writes on his self-founded platform Truth Social.
00:33 Shots fired at Trump: Security guards escort ex-President from stageThe former US President Donald Trump was escorted off the stage during a campaign appearance in the state of Pennsylvania by security personnel. Before that, shots were heard. In the images, Trump is seen with a bloody ear and raised fist.
1. Following the incident, there have been calls for a more peaceful political discourse, with Joe Biden expressing his condolences and urging against such violence.
2. Despite the incident at his campaign rally, Donald Trump has vowed to continue his political activities, expressing his intent to speak at the upcoming Republican National Convention in Wisconsin.
