Donald Trump has been injured after gunshots were heard during his campaign speech in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday. The former US president was quickly rushed off stage by his security team. He had blood stains on his right ear.
The Trump campaign later released a statement saying that the former president “is fine.”
Updates
00:18 GMT
Vivek Ramaswamy, who had challenged Trump for the Republican nomination before endorsing him, dismissed Biden’s “ritual condemnation of political violence” as “insufficient and irrelevant.
“No amount of verbiage today changes the toxic national climate that led to this tragedy,” Ramaswamy said. “Today, the future survival of the United States of America came down to less than a hair’s width in the path of a bullet.”
“Regardless of who you vote for, let’s unite around the TRUTH that what happened today is unacceptable, now and forever,” he added.
00:08 GMT
President Joe Biden has condemned “the shooting at Donald Trump’s rally in Pennsylvania.”
“I’m grateful to hear that he’s safe and doing well. I’m 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 Service for getting him to safety. There’s no place for this kind of violence in America. We must unite as one nation to condemn it,” said a statement released by the White House.
00:05 GMT
Former President Barack Obama, a Democrat, denounced the assassination attempt.
“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. Michelle and I are wishing him a quick recovery,” he wrote on X.
00:02 GMT
While no one has taken responsibility for the attempt at Trump’s life, several Republican commentators have pointed out violent rhetoric and imagery coming from the Democrats in recent days.
Biden told donors on July 8 that “it’s time to put Trump in a bullseye.” The June cover of the New Republic magazine showed Trump as Adolf Hitler. Meanwhile, major Democrat donor Reid Hoffman had responded to criticism of his funding of lawsuits against Trump by reportedly saying “I wish I had made him an actual martyr.”
23:55 GMT
A close-up photo from the Trump rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on Saturday shows the injured Republican presidential candidate being rushed offstage after an assassination attempt.
23:52 GMT
A witness outside the rally told the BBC that he and his friends saw a man dressed in tan camouflage climbing onto the roof of a building with a rifle and warned the police about it.
“Secret Service is looking at us from the top of the barn, I’m pointing at that roof – and next thing you know, five shots rang out,” the man said.
He added that after the man shot at Trump, “Secret Service blew his head off.”
23:48 GMT
Former President George W. Bush, a political foe of Trump, issued a statement condemning the assassination attempt.
“Laura and I are grateful that President Trump is safe following the cowardly attack on his life. And we commend the men and women of the Secret Service for their speedy response,” Bush said.
23:43 GMT
“Now is the time for every American who loves our country to step back from the division, renounce all violence, and unite in prayer for President Trump and his family,” independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said in response to the assassination attempt.
23:39 GMT
Pennsylvania Congressman Dan Meuser, who was in the front row at the rally, told reporters that he heard 8-10 shots that sounded like a .22 or a small-caliber weapon. He said it appeared “multiple people” in the crowd had been hit.
23:36 GMT
California Governor Gavin Newsom, a prominent Democrat, condemned the shooting.
“Violence has NO place in our democracy. My thoughts are with President Trump and everyone impacted at the rally today,” Newsom said on X.
23:33 GMT
President Joe Biden is being briefed on the incident at the Trump rally by Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and his homeland security adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall, according to the White House.
23:31 GMT
Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldinger has said that two people are dead, including the apparent shooter.
The body being taken off the stands appears to have been one of the rallygoers.
23:26 GMT
“My thoughts and prayers are with President Donald Trump in these dark hours,” Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on X.
Orban had visited Trump at Mar-a-Lago on Friday, as part of his diplomatic mission to peacefully resolve the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
23:23 GMT
One person is believed to be dead, Pittsburgh ABC affiliate WTAE reported, citing Butler County District Attorney Richard Goldfinger. They did not say if that was the shooter.
23:19 GMT
“President Trump thanks law enforcement and first responders for their quick action during this heinous act. He is fine and is being checked out at a local medical facility. More details will follow,” campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said in a statement.
23:16 GMT
There are unconfirmed reports that local police shot and killed the would-be assassin, who remains unidentified. A livestream from the rally showed several officers carrying a lifeless body away from one of the stands.
23:12 GMT
Elon Musk was one of the first to comment on the incident. “I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” the owner of SpaceX, Tesla and X (formerly Twitter) wrote on social media.
23:08 GMT
Following the shooting, tech billionaire Elon Musk openly endorsed Trump.
“I fully endorse President Trump and hope for his rapid recovery,” Musk wrote on X, which he owns. He had previously said he supported Trump’s policies, but had stopped short of a full endorsement.
“Last time America had a candidate this tough was Theodore Roosevelt,“ he added a few minutes later, referring to another presidential candidate who survived an assassination attempt in 1912.
23:08 GMT
A photo of bloodied Trump shaking his fist has quickly made rounds on social media. His son Donald Trump Jr. posted it on X (formerly Twitter) with the caption, “He’ll never stop fighting to Save America.”
23:08 GMT
Trump was in the middle of an impassioned speech when the shots were heard.
“And then the worst president in the history of our country took over. And look what happened to our country. Probably 20 million people [came in illegally]… you want to really see something that sad, take a look at what happened over…” Trump said before shots rang out.
23:08 GMT
Trump was in the middle of an impassioned speech when the shots were heard.
“And then the worst president in the history of our country took over. And look what happened to our country. Probably 20 million people [came in illegally]… you want to really see something that sad, take a look at what happened over…” Trump said before shots rang out.
23:06 GMT
Local authorities believe one person at the rally was fatally shot, but have no confirmation or information about their identity. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican and a Trump ally, also said that there might be at least one fatality.
There has been no information about the shooter.
23:02 GMT
At least three shots could be heard as Trump addressed a crowd of his supporters. The candidate clutched his right ear and ducked behind the podium. Secret Service agents quickly surrounded him.
As Trump’s microphone was still live, he could be heard telling them to “wait, wait” as he rose, put a fist up in the air, and mouthed “fight, fight” at the crowd, which cheered. The Republican presidential candidate was then taken to a hospital.