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Report nowDrones carrying explosives, snipers, and a storming of the White House: According to its own statements, the FBI thwarted a plot to attack a martial arts event on the U.S. president’s birthday.
According to its own statements, the FBI thwarted a suspected attack on a mixed martial arts event in front of the White House on June 14— U.S. President Donald Trump’s birthday.
As a result of a multistate operation, several people were taken into custody, FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on Tuesday on the platform X. He stated that the allegedly planned attacks had been “nipped in the bud.”
On June 10, FBI and our law enforcement partners became aware of a potential threat to the UFC America 250 event in Washington, D.C. involving individuals outside of the National Capital Region – and thanks to the rapid action of this FBI, our partners, and the Department of… pic.twitter.com/PbWkIk1Lr5
— FBI Director Kash Patel (@FBIDirectorKash) June 16, 2026
A report by Fox News, which the FBI director shared, cited law enforcement officials as saying that the alleged attack was to involve drones loaded with explosives. The “New York Post” reports that there were five arrests.
The plan was to strike buildings in the vicinity to force an evacuation of the event and drive attendees toward a group of snipers. The plan was then to storm the entrance to the White House, the report said.
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Patel wrote that the FBI and law enforcement agencies had already become aware of a “potential threat” to the event on June 10. As reported by Fox News and CBS News, an arrest was made shortly thereafter.
On Trump’s 80th birthday, cage fights took place on the South Lawn of the White House. (File photo)
dpa
Investigators reportedly became aware of the alleged attack plans through chats on the Signal messaging app, which led to further arrests. The White House did not initially comment on the reports.
Trump himself apparently knew nothing about the planned attack, as he admitted at the G7 summit in Evian. The only attacks he was aware of, he said, were those by the UFC fighters who were beating each other up in the ring.
Q: Were you briefed on the attack plans for the UFC event at the White House? TRUMP: ... Q: The FBI thwarted an attack TRUMP: I haven't heard about it, no. The attack I watched were the fighters.
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 16. Juni 2026 um 14:57
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U.S. President Trump is considered a fan of mixed martial arts—an often bloody combat sport that combines techniques from boxing, wrestling, kickboxing, karate, and jiu-jitsu, among others. At Sunday’s event, top stars from the professional MMA league Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) competed against each other in a specially constructed arena.
In addition to Trump and his family, guests included several cabinet members and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. The official occasion was the celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of U.S. Independence Day. However, Independence Day is actually on July 4.
16.06.2026, 14:50
16.06.2026, 17:50
