Former US President Donald Trump has assured his supporters that he is “doing well” following a dramatic shooting at his rally in Pennsylvania.
The incident, which occurred on Saturday, saw Trump rushed off the stage after gunshots rang out in the crowd.
The Republican National Committee (RNC) published a statement from Trump in which he expressed gratitude to law enforcement and the Secret Service for their swift action.
“I was shot with a bullet that pierced the upper part of my right ear,” Trump revealed. “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin.”
Before the shooting, Trump was delivering a speech criticizing what he called “the worst president in the history of our country” and discussing the state of the nation. Midway through his remarks, gunfire erupted, prompting a rapid response from his security team. Videos from the event showed Trump pumping his fist defiantly in the air as he was escorted off stage, despite blood being visible on his ear.
In a post on Truth Social, a platform he founded, Trump extended his condolences to the families of the victims. “Most importantly, I want to extend my condolences to the family of the person at the rally who was killed, and also to the family of another person that was badly injured. It is incredible that such an act can take place in our country,” he stated.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has identified the shooter as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania.
The FBI described the incident as an assassination attempt. According to the US Secret Service, their operatives shot and killed Crooks at the scene.
