By Reuters and published by SwissInfo.ch
Butler, Pennsylvania – Donald Trump was safe, the US Secret Service said on Saturday (July 13) after multiple shots rang out at a rally by the Republican presidential candidate in Pennsylvania as video showed Trump grimacing and raising his right hand to his right.
“The Secret Service has implemented protective measures and the former president is safe,” a Secret Service spokesperson said on X after what the agency called an incident. “This is now an active Secret Service investigation and further information will be released when available.”
Multiple shots were heard at the outdoor rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, shortly after Trump began his speech.
Body guards then crowded around Trump as he ducked below the podium and armed officers took up positions at the front of the stage. Trump repeatedly raised his fist to the crowd and shouted as he was escorted to a vehicle by the US Secret Service.
CNN reported that Trump was injured, but gave no other details. It was not clear how or what injuries he may have sustained. Video showed him with blood on his right ear and the right side of his face.
Trump’s campaign spokesperson said Trump was fine and that he was being checked out at a local medical facility, according to a CNN reporter on X.
The venue was abandoned with chairs knocked over and yellow police tape around the stage. A helicopter flew above and law enforcement officers walked through the area, the video feed showed. Armed law enforcement officers were also seen on a roof near the stage where Trump was standing.
US President Joe Biden received an initial briefing on the incident, the White House said.
Trump and Biden are locked in a close election rematch, with most opinion polls including Reuters/Ipsos showing the two evenly matched.
Biden has been facing his own pushback within his own party following a disastrous debate performance against the former president a little more than two weeks ago.
Trump, who served as president from 2017-2021, easily bested his rivals for the Republican nomination early in the campaign and has largely unified around him the party that had briefly wavered in support after his supporters attacked the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 attempting to overturn his 2020 election defeat.
CAPTIONS:
Top and Front Page: Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is helped off the stage at a campaign event in Butler, Pa., on Saturday, July 13, 2024. Photo: AP/Gene J. Puskar and published by Yahoo!News
Insert: Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump is surrounded by US Secret Service agents at a campaign rally, on July 13, 2024, in Pennsylvania. Photo: AP/Evan Vucci and published by Yahoo!News
(Reporting by Nathan Layne, Jarrett Renshaw, John Kruzel, Daniel Wallis, Scott Malone, Jasper Ward; Writing by Susan Heavey; Editing by Nick Zieminski and Daniel Wallis)
Also read:Thai, Indian ministers hold key talks in Delhi
Biden mixes up Harris, Trump names as calls to end his campaign grow
#SaveLaoKip drive with Thai baht and other foreign currencies not accepted stuns Thais
Decomposed body of a woman found, suspected to be kidnapped Chinese student
Only 43 billion baht in Central Fund to finance digital wallet project
Certain party ‘offering hidden payoffs in bid to recruit senators’
