FBI confirms "What hit Trump in the ear was a bullet"

SDA

27.7.2024 - 05:20

Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at the Turning Point Believers' Summit in Florida. Photo: Lynne Sladky/AP/dpa
Republican US presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at the Turning Point Believers' Summit in Florida. Photo: Lynne Sladky/AP/dpa
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First the FBI announced that it had not been proven whether Donald Trump was actually hit by a bullet during the assassination attempt on 13 July. Trump is outraged at the head of the Federal Police, now the FBI has responded: it was not a shard of glass, but a bullet.

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No time? blue News summarizes for you

  • On Wednesday, FBI chief Christopher Wray announced that it had not been conclusively proven whether Donald Trump was actually hit by a bullet during the assassination attempt on July 13.
  • Rumors were circulating that the former US president could have been hit by a piece of glass.
  • After the FBI chief's comments, Trump clashed with the federal police.
  • Now the FBI has clarified that Trump was hit by a whole bullet or one that shattered into smaller pieces.

Two weeks after the shooting at a campaign event in the US state of Pennsylvania, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump announces a return to the site of the attack. He did not give any details about the planned event in Butler.

At the same time, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) clarified that the former president was hit by a bullet in the gun attack. Previously, FBI chief Christopher Wray had left this open. There were also rumors that Trump could have been hit by a piece of glass.

Trump outraged at FBI chief

On Friday afternoon (local time), the Republican took a swipe at FBI chief Wray in a series of posts on his online mouthpiece Truth Social.

The reason for this was a statement by the FBI chief before a congressional committee in which he refused to commit to whether Trump was injured by a bullet or a splinter in the ear. Trump wrote: "No, unfortunately it was a bullet that hit my ear, hard. There was no glass or shrapnel." Wray's statements would harm the FBI, the Republican said.

Trump's former personal physician from his time in the White House, Ronny Jackson, also spoke out and said in a letter: "There is absolutely no evidence that it was anything other than a bullet." As he had been an emergency physician in the US Navy for more than 20 years, he had treated many gunshot wounds in his career.

FBI responds to Trump's outburst

Finally, the FBI responded with a statement on Friday evening (local time): "What struck former President Trump in the ear was a bullet, whole or fragmented into smaller pieces, fired from the deceased's rifle," the FBI stated.

Trump then wrote on Truth Social: "I assume this is the best apology we will get from Director Wray, but it is fully accepted!"

Trump announces "big" rally in Butler

Pictures of Trump with blood on his ear and some blood on his face - and at the same time with a clenched fist - went around the world after the attack. After the attack, Trump shouted "Fight, fight, fight!", which has since become a kind of motto for his supporters.

He now wrote that he wanted to hold a "big and wonderful" rally in Butler. However, the time and place were left open. "What a day this is going to be - fight, fight, fight!" the Republican wrote in capital letters.

Location of the event is open

The New York Times recently reported that the Secret Service had advised Trump's campaign team not to hold any more major events in the open air in future. It was completely unclear where the campaign event announced by Trump would take place in Butler. After the attack, the 78-year-old had appeared in large halls.

The ex-president wore a white bandage on his ear for several days after the attack. At the Republican Party convention in Milwaukee, which took place directly after the assassination, some supporters also stuck a kind of bandage to their ears in solidarity.

Out of solidarity: At the Republican Party convention in Milwaukee, some Trump supporters also taped their ears (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Out of solidarity: At the Republican Party convention in Milwaukee, some Trump supporters also taped their ears (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
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Trump has now announced that he wants to commemorate the firefighter who was killed and the two injured at the planned event in Butler. The Republican had kissed the firefighter's helmet on stage during his speech at the party convention.


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