WASHINGTON: Six Secret Service agents on duty during last year’s assassination attempt against Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally received suspensions ranging from 10 to 42 days, the agency said on Thursday.
The Secret Service did not identify the agents or disclose specific grounds for their suspensions.
A gunman opened fire at Trump’s rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, 2024, while the candidate was speaking on stage. The shooter accessed a nearby rooftop with a direct line of sight to the former president.
Trump and others were injured, and a bystander and the shooter were killed. Multiple investigations were launched into the Secret Service, and its director resigned.
Trump said in an interview that will air on Saturday that the Secret Service erred by not stationing an agent on the rooftop and not including local police in the communications system.
“So there were mistakes made. And that shouldn’t have happened,” he said during an interview with Fox News’ “My View with Lara Trump.”
Secret Service Director Sean Curran, who was the agent in charge of Trump’s security detail at the rally, said in a statement: “The agency has taken many steps to ensure such an event can never be repeated in the future.”
The Secret Service said it has implemented 21 of 46 recommendations made by congressional oversight bodies. Sixteen other recommendations were in progress and nine were not directed at the Secret Service, it said.
The Secret Service said it was implementing protective measures for golf courses. After the Butler assassination attempt, a man with a gun hid near a Trump-owned golf course in Florida with the intent to kill the then-Republican presidential candidate.
Six Secret Service agents punished over Trump assassination attempt
https://arab.news/wfjua
Six Secret Service agents punished over Trump assassination attempt
Australia holds day of reflection to honor victims of Bondi Beach attack
- The gun attack, Australia’s worst in nearly 30 years, is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting Jews
SYDNEY: Australia held a day of reflection on Sunday to honor those killed and wounded in a mass shooting that targeted a seaside Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach a week ago.
The gun attack, Australia’s worst in nearly 30 years, is being investigated as an act of terrorism targeting Jews. Authorities have ramped up patrols and policing across the country to prevent further antisemitic violence.
Australian flags were flown at half-mast on Sunday on federal and New South Wales state government buildings, with an official minute of silence to be held at 6:47 p.m. local time.
Authorities also invited Australians to light a candle on Sunday night “as a quiet act of remembrance with family, friends or loved ones” of the 15 people killed and dozens wounded in the attack, allegedly carried out by a father and son.
“At 6:47 p.m., you can light a candle in your window to remember the victims of the antisemitic terrorist attack in Bondi and support those who are grieving,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on social media platform X late on Saturday.
Albanese, under pressure from critics who say his center-left government has not done enough to curb a surge in antisemitism since Israel launched its war in Gaza, has vowed to strengthen hate laws in the wake of the massacre.
On Saturday, the government of New South Wales, which includes Sydney, pledged to introduce a bill on Monday to ban the display of symbols and flags of “terrorist organizations,” including those of Al-Qaeda, Al Shabab, Boko Haram, Hamas, Hezbollah and Daesh.
Around 1,000 surf lifesavers returned to duty at Bondi Beach on Saturday, restarting patrols after a halt sparked by the shooting on the first evening of the Jewish festival.
A day earlier, Australia’s Jewish community gathered at Bondi Beach for prayers, while hundreds of swimmers and surfers formed a huge circle in the waters off the beach to honor victims.
Alleged gunman Sajid Akram, 50, was shot dead by police at the scene. His 24-year-old son Naveed Akram, who was also shot by police and emerged from a coma on Tuesday afternoon, has been charged with 59 offenses, including murder and terrorism, according to police. He remained in custody in hospital.
Authorities believe the pair was inspired by militant Sunni Muslim group Daesh, with flags of the group allegedly found in the car the two took to Bondi.
