International Desk, Bangladesh Global: The shooting that wounded Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Saturday was an assassination attempt, the FBI confirmed in a press conference.
"This evening we had what we are calling an assassination attempt against our former president Donald Trump," Special Agent Kevin Rojek told reporters in Butler, Pennsylvania, where Trump was holding a rally when shots rang out.
Meanwhile, the FBI has identified the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks of Pennsylvania, US media reported early Sunday.
"The FBI has identified Thomas Matthew Crooks, 20, of Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, as the subject involved in the assassination attempt of former President Donald Trump on July 13, in Butler, Pennsylvania," the FBI said in a statement quoted by NBC and CBS.
Donald Trump was hit in the ear in an assassination attempt by a gunman at a campaign rally on Saturday, in a chaotic and shocking incident that will fuel fears of instability ahead of the 2024 US presidential election.
Long history of shootings in US presidential politicsLong history of shootings in US presidential politics
The 78-year-old former president was rushed off stage with blood smeared across his face after the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, while the gunman and a bystander were killed and two spectators critically injured.
The Republican candidate raised a defiant fist to the crowd as he was bundled away to safety and said afterward "I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear."
President Joe Biden, who is set to face Trump in November's deeply polarized election, said the incident was "sick" and added that there was "no place in America for this kind of violence."
"We cannot be like this," Biden said.
World leaders react to Trump rally shootingWorld leaders react to Trump rally shooting
As the bangs ran out, Trump, wearing a red "Make America Great Again" cap, grimaced and clutched a hand to his ear, with blood visible on his ear and cheek.
He fell to the floor as Secret Service agents swarmed onto the podium, surrounding him and escorting him roughly off the stage to a nearby vehicle.
"It is incredible that such an act can take place in our Country," Trump said on his TruthSocial network within hours, in remarks sure to stoke political tensions already engulfing the United States.
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