NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, after the assassination attempt on US presidential candidate Donald Trump, spoke about the importance of unity among alliance members “to protect freedom and shared values” in the X network.
⠀
“I am shocked by the attack on former US President Trump. I wish him a speedy recovery, my thoughts are with those affected. I condemn this attack. Political violence has no place in our democracies, and NATO allies remain united to protect our freedom and values,” Stoltenberg wrote.
⠀
The head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and the European Council Charles Michel have also condemned the attack on Trump.
⠀
Donald Trump cut short his speech in Pennsylvania on Saturday due to the shooting. The video showed how the politician was being taken away by the arms by security; his ear was bloodied. Trump later said he was shot in the ear and lost a lot of blood. The US Secret Service said it had killed a suspect who fired several shots towards the stage. One spectator was killed in the shooting and two others were critically injured.
⠀
US President Joe Biden said he is praying for Trump’s recovery, but does not yet have enough facts to call the incident an assassination attempt on the politician. The FBI later announced that an assassination attempt had been made on Trump; the bureau was not ready to reveal the identity of the suspect or name his motives. According to the FBI, US authorities did not know in advance about the preparation of the crime.
⠀
Local media write that the suspect is 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks from Pennsylvania, the state where the rally took place. He was reportedly hiding on the roof of a production building about 100 meters from the stage – outside the area where the event was being held.
