Trump abruptly escorted from briefing after shooting near White House
Washington: US President Donald Trump was abruptly escorted by a US Secret Service agent out of a live press briefing on coronavirus as a precautionary measure, after a shooting incident outside the White House.
Following the incident on Monday, Trump minutes later returned for the news conference and said things were under control.
"White House seems to be very well under control. I would like to thank the Secret Service for doing their --always quick and very effective work but there was an actual shooting and somebody has been taken to the hospital, Trump told reporters as he resumed the press briefing.
"I don't know the condition of the person. It seems that the person was shot by Secret Service. So we will see what happens," Trump said.
The incident happened soon after Trump started speaking inside the James Brady press briefing room of the White House.
As he was making his opening statement and talking about NASDAQ and economy, a top secret service agent reached out to him and requested him to leave the briefing room.
The secret service was seen saying something into his ears, after which the President, calm and composed, walked out of the briefing room.
Trump later told the reporters that he was taken to the Oval Office.
"We were taken just out over to the Oval Office," he said. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin was also in the briefing room.
Amidst confusion as Trump left the briefing room for several minutes, the Secret Service in a tweet confirmed the incident, saying "There has been an officer involved shooting at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Ave. Law enforcement officials are on the scene".
"The investigation into a USSS officer involved shooting is ongoing. A male subject and a USSS officer were both transported to a local hospital. At no time during this incident was the White House complex breached or were any protectees in danger, the Secret Service said in another tweet an hour later.
Trump told reporters that the incident happened outside the White House complex.
"It was outside of the White House in this area right over here and they will have details for you in a little while. Somebody is taken to the hospital. It seems that the shooting was done by the law enforcement at that person, at the suspect, he said.
It was the suspect who was shot and this just took place. A couple of people outside I noticed a man named John Roberts who you know very well he reported that he heard shots. He was outside and he heard two shots, he added.
Trump praised Secret Service for their professionalism. Responding to a question, Trump said that he was not rattled.
"It's unfortunate that this is a world but the world has always been a dangerous place; it's not something that is unique. The world has been--you look back over the centuries the world has been a dangerous place, very dangerous place and it will continue I guess for a period of time, he said.
Trump said that he feels very safe with Secret Service.
"They are fantastic people. They are the best of the best, and they are highly trained. I don't know if anybody got to walk outside, but there were a lot of terrific looking people ready to go if something was necessary. People at the highest level of law enforcement there's nobody like these people, so they just wanted me to step aside for a little while just to make sure that everything was cleared outside because it was right in this area, he said.
"I didn't even think about not coming back (for the news conference). I said am I able to go back and they said you have to wait a little while. I waited a little while as you know in the Oval Office area and I said, can I get back now and they said yes, and they have a lot of fortification outside just in case, but it was one person, he said.
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Representative of Iran's Supreme Leader in India calls current situation 'no war, no peace'
Bengaluru (PTI): Representative of Iran's Supreme Leader in India, Abdul Majeed Hakeem Ilahi on Saturday characterised the ongoing tensions between his country and the Israel-US alliance as a state of “no war, no peace”.
Calling for an immediate halt to the conflict, he said the global stability hinges on those who initiated the war.
He questioned why countries affected by the war and suffering from the energy crisis are not pressuring the US and Israel to stop the aggression.
Addressing a press conference here, Ilahi said Iran did not want the conflict, but was compelled to respond amid continued attacks, even as negotiations were expected to continue.
"Iran didn't want this war, but Iran was forced by the war and several times Iran tried to avoid this war... I don't know what is the condition of these people and these countries (US-Israel)... they want to impose on other countries what they want, and who gave them this authority?" he questioned.
Recalling the negotiations Iran held in Oman, he said talks later moved to Geneva and made progress before being disrupted by sudden attacks.
Ilahi claimed that airstrikes and missile attacks led to the deaths of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ministers, commanders and civilians.
"They killed a lot of civilians… They attacked a primary school, and they killed 175 innocent girls," he said, claiming over 4,000 deaths, more than 40,000 injuries, and widespread damage to houses, hospitals, universities and public infrastructure.
Despite these losses, he said Iran resisted calls for “unconditional surrender” and stood firm and defended itself.
"They wanted unconditional surrender. Which no one—no one can accept it. Iran said, 'Okay, we are ready to be sacrificed,' but we are not ready to submit ourselves," he added.
He argued that they (US-Israel) proposed the current ceasefire only after realising that they could not achieve any of their objectives after 40 days of conflict.
The envoy further claimed that the ceasefire is not an actual ceasefire, but a “no war, no peace” situation.
Explaining the current situation in Iran, he said conditions remain stable and people are going about their daily lives.
"They are working ....(leading) their ordinary life. They are working—they're going farming and they do everything....and they aren't scared of anything. And they are ready to defend themselves," he added.
Addressing the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, he said the situation was stable before February 28 and all countries benefited from it.
"(For) 10,000 years, the Strait of Hormuz was open...and Iran daily yearly spent a lot for providing security in the Strait of Hormuz... so no one even complained anything about the Strait of Hormuz. Everyone was free...and even our enemies their warship was passing through the Strait of Hormuz," he said.
However, he linked the current maritime instability to the actions of the US and Israel.
"So Iran cannot do anything. Those people who initiated, created and started this war, they have to stop it. And everything will go back to normal," he said.
Criticising the mentality of the "great powerful country", Ilahi said, "they think they have the right to do whatever they want. It should change."
He sought to know why the countries affected by the conflict are not exerting pressure on the US and the "Zionist" regime to halt the war.
"Why are they not asking them? This crisis and problem by which a lot of countries are affected was created by them. A lot of factories are closed and even working days in some countries reduced... A lot of restaurants are closed," he said.
Seeking fairness and justice, Ilahi said instead of asking Iran, all those nations should ask those who initiated this war to stop it, by telling them, "we are suffering."
To a query on international mediation, Ilahi, referring to the US, asked, "Is it acceptable and reasonable that one country orders all countries -- you should not deal with this country, You should not purchase from this country. You should not have business with this country. You should not buy from this country."
Ilahi also highlighted Iran's long-standing ties with India and said, "It is a great country and we respect India and Indians."
"We have 5,000 years relationship and friendship. We are connected to India by education, by philosophy, by culture, by civilisation and by the economy," he said.
According to him, the bilateral cooperation remains strong, citing diplomatic engagement.
"At the moment also, our relationship, collaboration, cooperation with India is very good," he said, adding Iran allowing Indian ships to pass through Strait of Hormuz reflects the ties.
"Iran allowed Indian ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Why? A lot of countries couldn't get this permission?... The relationship between Iran and India is very good," he added.
He expressed confidence that in future too, the ties between Iran and India will be strong.
